STUDIES  AND  OBSERVATIONS 

IN  THE 

SCHOOL-ROOM 

KRATZ 


-NRLF 


$B    17    Dlfl 


LIBRARY 

OF  THE 

UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA. 

Class 


STUDIES   AND 

OBSERVATIONS   IN  THE 

SCHOOL-ROOM 


BY 

HENRY  ELTON  KRATZ,  PH.D. 

SUPERINTENDENT   OF   SCHOOLS,   CALUMET,    MICH. 
PRESIDENT   OF   CHILD   STUDY   DEPARTMENT,    N.  E.  A.,  IQO2 


gfgRAJR^ 

^     OF  THE 

UNIVERSITY 

cf 


EDUCATIONAL  PUBLISHING  COMPANY 

BOSTON 
NEW  YORK  CHICAGO          SAN  FRANCISCO 


5EN 


COPYRIGHTED 

BY  EDUCATIONAL  PUBLISHING  COMPANY 
1907 


INTRODUCTION 

Doubtless,  parents  and  teachers  have  studied  children  from 
the  time  of  the  earliest  homes  and  schools,  and  certainly  chil- 
dren have  studied  parents  and  teachers  (perhaps  more  effec- 
tively) for  as  long.  It  is  only  within  the  last  quarter  of  a 
century,  however,  that  teachers  have  attempted  to  study  chil- 
dren in  a  systematic  way.  The  enthusiasm  \vith  which  such 
study  was  carried  on  in  this  country  a  dozen  years  ago,  caused 
the  movement  to  be  called  "another  educational  fad"  to  which 
Americans  are  supposed  to  be  peculiarly  subject.  To  many 
teachers  it  was  that  and  nothing  more,  but  to  others  have  come 
visions  of  the  depth  of  educational  wisdom  to  be  reached 
from  knowing  the  little  child,  his  heart,  his  mind,  his  soul, 
"all  in  all"  wherein  is  mirrored  so  clearly  "what  God  and  man 
is." 

To-day  there  is  much  less  popular  talk  about  the  study  of 
children,  but  much  more  actual  study  of  them.  The  froth 
and  foam  have  disappeared,  but  interest  in  children  has  be- 
come an  essential  part  of  all  streams  of  thought  connected 
in  any  way  with  the  origin  and  development  of  man.  Evolu- 
tionary theory  which  has  so  completely  modified  scientific, 
philosophical  and  even  theological  thought  in  the  last  half 
century,  culminates  and  finds  its  highest  application  in  the 
development  of  children,  and  the  individual  needs  of  children 
are  being  considered  by  teachers  more  than  at  any  time  since 
the  adoption  of  the  graded  system, 

3 


159431 


4  INTRODUCTION 

Children  may  be  profitably  studied  individually  by  teachers, 
as  a  means  of  knowing  how  best  to  deal  with  each  one,  or  in 
groups,  as  a  means  of  knowing  what  is  best  to  emphasize  in 
class  work  and  school  management.  Teachers  are  also  in  a 
position  to  collect  data  from  which  scientific  investigators 
may  derive  the  general  truths  of  psychology,  child  study,  and 
education.  Practically  no  grade  teachers  and  few  superin- 
tendents have  the  time  or  training  that  would  permit  them 
to  do  the  work  of  a  specialist  in  building  up  a  science  of  child 
study.  To  expect  it  of  them  would  be  more  absurd  than 
to  expect  them  to  make  original  contributions  to  the  science 
of  chemistry,  for  the  phenomena  of  child  life  are  far  more 
complex  than  are  those  of  atoms  and  molecules.  Yet  ob- 
serving persons  who  are  interested  in  nature,  are  often  able 
to  report  facts  regarding  the  distribution  of  plants  and  the 
habits  of  animals  that  are  valuable  to  the  biologist  and,  in  a 
similar  way,  teachers  who  are  in  constant  association  with 
children  and  systematically  and  intelligently  interested  in 
them,  can  furnish  the  specialist  with  numberless  facts  that  arc 
not  accessible  to  him. 

Superintendents  may  ask  teachers  to  co-operate  in  such 
collection  of  data,  either  with  or  without  the  assistance  of 
specialists,  as  a  means  of  arousing  a  more  intelligent  interest 
in  children  and  of  leading  teachers  to  teach  children  rather 
than  subjects.  Such  studies  carefully  made  and  tabulated 
give  teachers  and  superintendent  a  more  definite  and  pre- 
cise knowledge  of  the  local  conditions  that  are  affecting  the 
development  of  the  children,  which  the  school  should  either 
supplement  or  counteract.  Just  as  an  examination  often 
reveals  to  teachers  and  superintendents  the  strength  and 
weakness  of  the  work  being  done,  more  perfectly  than  do  the 
daily  recitations,  so  do  child  study  tests  and  questionnaires, 


INTRODUCTION  5 

when   carefully   tabulated,    reveal   conditions   and   influences 
hitherto  unsuspected. 

The  author  of  this  book,  Superintendent  Kratz,  early  realized 
the  true  value  of  child  study  and  few,  if  any,  of  our  superin- 
tendents have  maintained  the  same  consistent,  intelligent 
interest  during  and  since  the  time  when  the  first  popular 
wave  of  enthusiasm  passed  over  our  country.  His  "Studies 
and  Observations  in  the  School-room,"  delightfully  written 
as  it  is,  will  be  of  popular  interest,  and  especially  valuable 
and  suggestive  to  teachers  and  superintendents.  Studies 
similar  to  those  described  in  Chapters  I,  II,  III,  IV,  VI,  VII, 
and  XII  should  be  made  in  every  city,  in  order  that  teachers 
and  superintendents  may  intelligently  adapt  the  work  of  the 
school  to  local  conditions  and  individual  needs,  while  Chap- 
ters V,  VIII,  and  IX  present  truths  that  are  of  universal  inter- 
est and  application.  Other  chapters,  such  as  X,  XIII,  XV, 
and  XVII,  give  interesting  glimpses  of  the  observations  and 
experiences  of  a  superintendent  of  schools. 

The  book  is  not  an  addition  to  the  many  weighty  volumes 
on  pedagogy  over  which  teachers  are  poring,  but  a  very  pleasant 
stimulating,  nutritive  refreshment  to  be  taken,  a  chapter  at 
a  time,  digested  and  applied. 

E.  A.  KIRKPATRICK 

Fitchburg,  Mass. 


TABLE  OF  CONTENTS 

CHAPTER  PAGE 

Introduction  by  Dr.  E.  A.  Kirkpatrick       .        .  3 

I     Explanatory 9 

II     Study  of  Pupils'  Preferences       .        .        .  15 

III  Children's  Knowledge  When  Entering  School  30 

IV  Primary  Pupils'  Ideas  of  Conduct  and  Punish- 

ment           38 

V     Characteristics  of  the  Best  Teacher  as  Recog- 
nized by  Children        .....  48 
VI     Money  Sense  in  Children        .         .         .         .  61 

VII     Children's  Reading 75 

VIII    How  May  Fatigue  in  the  School- Room  be  Re- 
duced to  the  Minimum  ?  .  89 
IX    A  Study  in  Musical  Interpretation      .         .         .105 

X    Alertness 115 

XI     A  Study  in  Spelling    .         .         .         .        .         .127 

XII     Questions  of  Grammar-Grade  Pupils     .         .  141 

XIII  The  Spirit  of  Criticism 158 

XIV  Outline  of  a  Manual  Training  Course     .         .  172 
XV     The  Building  of  Character          181 

XVI     A  Study  in  Study     .     .            ....  193 

XVII    A  Leaf  from  a  Superintendent's  Diary        .        .  206 


STUDIES  AND  OBSERVATIONS  IN  THE 
SCHOOL-ROOM 


CHAPTER   I 

EXPLANATORY 

In  presenting  "  Studies  and  Observations  in  the  School- 
Room"  to  the  teachers  of  the  country,  the  author  does 
not  presume  that  it  will  meet  "a  long- felt  want,"  but  he 
does  hope  that  it  will  be  of  some  assistance  to  that  con- 
stantly increasing  class  of  teachers  who  are  earnestly  striv- 
ing to  increase  the  efficiency  of  their  work,  and  render  it 
more  practical,  by  a  careful  study  and  more  thorough 
acquaintance  with  the  inclinations,  interests  and  needs 
of  their  pupils. 

STUDY  OF  INCLINATIONS  AND  INTERESTS 

The  pedagogical  literature  of  the  past  has  dwelt  too 
much  upon  the  realization  of  an  ideal  system  of  educa- 
tion, conceived  from  the  adult  point  of  view,  largely 
theoretical  in  character,  and  ignoring  the  inclinations 
and  interests  of  the  children.  In  fact,  at  times,  it  took 
on  the  extreme  form  that  the  more  the  system  of  educa- 
tion ran  counter  to  the  inclinations  of  the  children,  the 
better  it  was  calculated  to  develop  and  discipline  them, 
and  to  build  up  strong  character. 

9 


io  STUDIES    AND    OBSERVATIONS 

We  know  now  that  the  growth  is  through  self-activity, 
and  the  more  interesting  and  enjoyable  that  activity, 
provided  it  be  in  the  right  channels,  the  more  rapid  the 
growth.  The  successful  twentieth  century  teacher  must 
therefore  carefully  study  the  inclinations,  interests,  dis- 
likes, prejudices,  in  fact,  every  phase  of  the  emotional 
life  of  her  pupils,  so  that,  like  the  skillful  mariner,  she 
may  be  able  to  take  advantage  of  every  favoring  breeze 
to  reach  the  desired  port. 

The  careful  study  of  the  emotional  life  of  each  of  her 
pupils  is  also  demanded  from  the  standpoint  of  character 
building.  Out  of  the  emotions  come  the  currents  which 
shape  character.  The  successful  teacher  must  be  quick  to 
discover  in  what  direction  these  are  flowing,  and  keep  the 
wholesome  life  currents  open.  To  do  this,  requires  the 
most  careful  study  of  each  pupil  as  an  individual. 

The  author  hopes  that  the  presentation  of  these  studies 
may  lead  a  larger  number  of  teachers  to  see  what  a  simple 
and  yet  interesting  matter  it  is,  to  make  such  investiga- 
tions, and  thus  be  induced  to  enter  upon  some  line  of 
investigation  of  their  own  pupils.  He  feels  confident  that 
it  will  make  their  teaching  more  practical,  sympathetic, 
and  effective,  if  such  a  course  be  pursued. 

INDIVIDUAL  STUDY  OF  PUPILS 

Another  purpose  sought,  is  to  interest  the  teachers  in 
the  study  of  their,  pupils  as  individuals.  Teachers  have 
been  inclined  to  overlook  the  individual  pupil  in  instruct- 
ing the  large  classes  which  economy  seemed  to  demand. 
Class  instruction  has  failed  to  produce  its  best  results, 
because  it  labored  under  the  delusion  that  there  was  an 
average  pupil  through  whom  the  work  that  the  class 


IX    THE    SCHOOL-ROOM  n 

should  do  could  be  accurately  measured  and  adapted. 
The  problem  then  was  to  learn  the  capacity  of  that  sup- 
posed average  child,  and  cram  that  amount  of  pabulum 
down  the  mental  oesophagus  of  each  child,  nolens  volens, 
without  any  special  regard  to  his  individual  powers  of 
assimilation. 

It  is  now  recognized  that  instruction  must  be  adapted, 
as  far  as  possible,  to  the  peculiar  needs  of  each  pupil. 
This  necessitates  a  careful  study  on  the  part  of  the  teacher 
of  the  chief  characteristics  of  each  pupil  as  an  individual, 
so  that  instruction  may  be  adapted,  not  to  a  fictitious 
average  pupil,  but  as  far  as  possible,  to  the  peculiar 
mental  attitude  and  needs  of  each  pupil. 

About  ten  years  ago  the  author,  convinced  of  the  help- 
fulness of  a  study  of  each  pupil's  characteristics,  and  of 
the  desirability  of  its  being  pursued  in  a  systematic  man- 
ner, devised  the  blank,  which  he  called  "  Record  of  Pupil's 
Chief  Characteristics."  (See  next  page.) 

RESULTS 

The  results  of  such  study  were  highly  satisfactory. 
First,  and  of  foremost  importance,  the  teachers  were 
deeply  interested  in  the  study  of  the  chief  characteristics 
of  their  pupils  and  such  comments  as  these  were  made: 
"It's  hard  work.  I  have  my  pupils  in  my  thought  as 
never  before.  I  am  studying  them  and  their  individual 
peculiarities,  and  gaining  an  insight  into  them,  which  I 
know  must  prove  highly  helpful  to  me."  "Although  it 
is  hard  work,  yet  I  know  it  is  doing  me  a  world  of  good." 
"It  makes  my  teaching  so  much  more  interesting,  and 
gives  greater  definiteness  to  it.  I  am  gaining  a  clearer 
insight  into  child  nature." 


RECORD    OF   PUPIL'S    CHIEF   CHARACTERISTICS 

Pupil's    Name : 

Date '. —    Age Nationality 


190 

IQO 

First 
Month 

Fifth 
Month 

Ninth 
Month 

First 
Month 

Fifth    [ 
Month 

Ninth 
Month 

Health 

Temperament  (nervous, 

equable,  sluggish,  etc.) 

Grade 

If  Behind  Grade,  Why? 

General  Ability  (excellent, 

medium,  poor) 

Sight  (good  or  defective) 

Hearing  (good  or  defective) 

Observation  (excellent, 

medium,  poor) 

Memory  —  Verbal  (ex- 

cellent, medium,  poor) 

Memory  —  Thought  (ex- 

cellent, medium,  poor) 

Imagination  (vivid,  me- 

dium, weak) 

Thought  (strong,  medium, 

weak) 

Feeling  Through  Which 

to  Govern 

!    . 

Self  Control  (excellent, 

medium,  weak) 

Sense  of  Right  (excellent, 

medium,  weak) 

Use  of  Language  (excellent 

medium,  poor) 

Subject  of  Deepest  Interest 

Chief  Characteristic  (timid 

rash,  etc.) 

Greatest  Deficiency 

Fill  out  the  blanks  at  the  top  of  sheet  during  the  first  two  weeks;  the  remaining  blanks 
at  the  close  of  the  first  month,  or  as  soon  as  the  characteristics  called  for  can  be  learned. 
Where  words  are  enclosed  in  parentheses  as  "  excellent,"  "  medium,"  "  poor,"  etc.,  E.,  M., 
P.,  can  be  used  in  the  blanks. 

Add  to  the  record  any  changes  which  may  be  noticed  under  any  of  the  characteristics 
called  for.  If  none  can  be  noticed,  then  draw  a  line  in  the  space. 

The  principal  object  sought  5s  to  lead  teachers  to  study  each  pupil  as  an  individual,  note 
his  characteristics  and  thus  be  able  to  plan  for  and  attain  definite  results,  and  to  secure 
the  proper  development  of  the  individual  pupil. 


IN  THE  SCHOOL-ROOM  13 

Second,  There  was  a  more  intelligent  appreciation  on 
the  part  of  teachers  of  the  real  needs  and  the  defects  of 
their  pupils,  and  as  a  natural  consequence,  a  greater 
definiteness  of  aim  hi  their  work. 

Third,  There  were  found  a  few  children  who  were 
regarded  as  lacking  in  capacity  and  hopelessly  dull,  to 
be  simply  dull  in  hearing.  These,  when  relieved  of  par- 
tial deafness,  soon  manifested  quickened  mental  life. 
There  were  those  also  who  made  slow  progress  because 
of  defective  eyesight,  who  were  greatly  aided  in  their 
studies  by  the  use  of  glasses. 

Fourth,  Teachers  were  able  to  seat  pupils  to  a  better 
advantage,  placing  pupils  with  defective  senses  in  front 
seats. 

Fifth,  The  teachers  were  made  aware  of  physical  and 
mental  defects  and  weaknesses  of  pupils,  and  as  the 
record  kept  these  definitely  before  them,  they  were  better 
able  to  train  wisely  for  symmetrical  development. 

Sixth,  The  teachers  were  brought  into  closer  and  more 
companionable  relations  with  their  pupils  in  general,  and 
developed  greater  intelligence  and  sympathy  in  dealing 
with  the  so-called  bad  boys  and  girls. 

Seventh,  The  records  disclosed  to  the  superintendent, 
at  least  in  part,  how  carefully  his  teachers  studied  their 
pupils,  the  measurements  they  applied,  what  motives  they 
appealed  to,  what  feelings  they  sought  to  arouse,  what 
relations,  sympathetic  or  otherwise,  they  were  cultivating 
with  their  pupils. 

Candor  compels  the  admission  that  not  every  teacher 
in  the  corps  was  thus  profited,  but  the  important  fact 
still  remains  that  nearly  all  were  deeply  interested,  and 
their  work  was  greatly  advanced  in  efficiency. 


i4  STUDIES  AND   OBSERVATIONS 

This  general  attitude  of  studying  the  pupils,  naturally 
led  into  special  studies  of  the  children  as  to  their  ideas, 
interests,  likes  and  dislikes,  etc.,  and  thus  originated  the 
various  studies  recorded  in  this  volume.  Some  of  these 
investigations  were  made  according  to  plans  outlined  by 
the  author,  while  other  plans  were  simply  borrowed. 
Originality  is  not  held  as  the  chief  merit  of  this  volume. 
If  it  has  any  merit,  it  will  be  found  rather  in  the  direction 
of  leading  additional  teachers  into  this  interesting  and 
profitable  study  of  the  children. 


CHAPTER   II 

STUDY   OF  PUPILS'   PREFERENCES 
PLAN 

The  following  study  of  pupils'  preferences  is  based 
upon  a  careful  canvass  of  two  thousand  one  hundred 
eighty-one  papers,  written  as  a  language  exercise,  by 
third,  fourth,  fifth,  sixth,  seventh  and  eighth  grade  pupils, 
in  response  to  the  following  questions: 

1.  What  school  study  do  you  like  best?    Why? 

2.  What  school  study  do  you  like  least?    Why? 

3.  What  is  your  most  pleasant  work  out  of  school? 
Why? 

4.  What  is  your  most  unpleasant  work  out  of  school  ? 
Why? 

The  teachers  also  sent  in  statements  of  their  preferences 
as  far  as  school  studies  were  concerned. 

The  purposes  for  which  the  above  exercises  were  given 
were: 

1 .  To  give  teachers  an  insight  into  their  pupils'  prefer- 
ences in  regard  to  school  and  other  work,  so  as  to  bring 
them  into  closer  touch  and  sympathy  with  their  pupils. 

2.  To  raise  the  enquiry  whether  or  not  teachers'  prefer- 
ences for  certain  studies  lead  them  to  put  more  thought, 
energy  and  skill  into  the  teaching  of  such  studies  and  thus 
largely  shape  their  pupils'  preferences. 

3.  To  disclose  to  teachers,  through  their  pupils'  lack 

15 


H 
CO 


rt 

e 

w 

« 
Pu 

i 

p 

PLi 


w 
H 

r- 
o 


a 


vO                -O                 rO                CM                 <T>                M                 rt- 

SP!O 

uo             o              t^.             10             w              co            oO 

.£  ' 
"3 

t^                  O                  00                    CO                  CM                    NO 

«  i 
£< 

^t                                              00                       CM                       Tt                      M                     00 

vC               in              .O               i--              O               O                <*> 

saaip^j. 

O               to             o               CM               O              O             O 

M                                                                                   M 

g 

O                  C\               ^O                  ON                 O                  rO                 rf 

MM                                                                 M                    M                    w 

os 

Sa 

»O                O                    M                  \O                    O                    f*5                  CM 

M                M                CM                ro               t-i 

8 

|i 

s.fog 

«               t^             vO              CO              \O               O               O 

CM                           M                           M                            M                            M                            m                         M 

> 

&g 

U->                  CM                    10                  Tt                  rf                  O>                  -<t 

o 

.3° 

O              *O               O                O                O                rn             \O 

| 

O                O                **•               C\              CO                f*5              vO 

CM                            -1                            M                            M                                                           MM 

3 

t-          Tj- 

3 

>> 

0               r^              f> 

a 

vO               O               fD 

EjO 

r^ 

.2 

— 

sAog 

O*              "*              **• 

CM                     CM                     N 

ft 

O                     lf)                   CM 

CM                     CM                     CM 

< 

t^.                     IT)                     O 

M                     CM                     CM 

B 

^ 

to               M                o               O                fO                                  CM 

J 

>. 

S1J!O 

t~>.             <^-             \n             O              **•                             CM 

M                     CM                     CM                     <T)                   M                                              CM 

0 

I 

t^              O                •*               •*              U--                              ^O 

jj 

? 

CO                  CM                    't                   CN                  CM                                          ON 
CM                    FT)                  PO                  CO                  M                                           CM 

u 

o 

O                 ""i               O                O                O                                   CM 

PLI 

O               O               CM               CM               t^                              O 

CM                       PC                     CM                       M                       M                                                 CM 

rj-              t^              O               1--              to                                rf 

CM                     CM                     rO                   CM                     M                     —                     CM 

.« 

oo              ON             t^             «>.             «-o                             Ti- 
es               CM                fO               "^               T     -tD               fO 

a 

o           t^.          o\          t-*         co           5T""  •    Tt 

CM                            M                            M                                                                                                                           M 

3 

O               \O                O                CM                to               O               OO 
r/2               fO               n-               TJ-               TJ-               10               CO 

•< 

CM                to              *O                f»               O                O               O 

to             in             TJ-             t^            co              CM 

co              TJ-             O                rt              to             *O               Tf 

Pioj, 

CO                 sO                    Tt                  to                CO                  O                    CM 
rj-                  t^.                CO                    fO                  <^> 
^,                u^                ro                CO                CM                 M                  CM 

i 

S1J!O 

t^.                CO                f5              ^C                 Tf 
sO                    CN                  O                  Is-                  N                    O                    to 

CM                       CM                       M                       M 

3 

fc 

sAog 

\n             ro            t^>            N             w             N             Cl 
*r>              O                ^               •*               0               00 

CM                       CM                       -                       "                       "                                                  O 

swqo^ax 

O              O              TJ-             r^             M             co 

CM                       fM                       M                       I- 

£ 

T3 
2 

0 

"£               6       •£        1       -I      1 
S       1       E       1       1       H       H 

«T)                 •*                 10                 10                                                             ^t 

SHIO 

W                0                0                                                    "" 

e 

s.voa 

Tt*               ro              ^O             O                                                    ^t" 

.•£ 

w               «               O               0                                                 t-i 

& 

sO                *^i             O                O                                                    O^ 

o           o          o          o                                  o 

s 

H 

O\              O                N                »O              O                M                ON 

p 

os 

M 

IO                ^-                 CO                N                  O                  W                  **5 

b 

H 

R 

S^°H 

CO                                                               O                   t^-                 ON                 ON 

> 

2 

Tj-                 *H                  N                  fO                HI                  rt                 N 

5 

0 

W 

sjoipnaj. 

<S       "2        ^       °^        85       ^       ^ 

B 

w 
{j 

J 

0              ^t             *             <N              e«              c,              rf 

S 

w 

\O              00               O               ir>             TJ-              -<t              t» 

H 

a 

•a 

sXog 

IO                 IO                 Is*                 ON                 O                   t^                 ^t 

H 

5 

Tt                      fO                      ^f                      M                        M                        O                        <*5 

•f*H 

w 

to              10             NO                eO              O                «                H 

£ 

s 

- 

O               O               O               O               O               O               O 

E 

u: 

<*       S>       $        3       ^ 

r3 

M 

^ 

SIJ1O 

\O    ~           -3-               M                 H                 "-1                 °               °° 

i 

o 

•§ 

M             w             to            O            ^O             T)-           oo 

PH 

H 
?•. 

rj-                 fO                10                rf                 <N                  O                  **i 

Q 

a 

C-, 

. 

s-wiptjajL 

to          >i           «           PO          o           o          o 

io              O               O               O               O~        O              O 

00                   W                   W               00                   fO                00                   ON 

r>.             ro             10             •*             fO             w              ON 

w 

c 

^       i?       "2        J?       S     '   JT       tr 

^ 

i 

W 

N                  p,                  10                O                O                  ^O               *O 

^ 

0              0              0              0              0              0              0 

0 

>H 

F.OX 

ro         o           "si-          ir)         °°          ^          SL 

-j-               t^              00                                                                          ij" 
IO                 IO                 ^O                                                                                   pj 

P4 

i 

WO 

t       3       S      «-       J       o       £ 

g 

J5 

aCog 

T^    ?    !    §    *     § 

»WL 

O                     O                     T).                   t^                   <N                   00                     M 

1 

O 

"5              43 

1     1     -s     •§           Io     3 

i8  STUDIES   AND    OBSERVATIONS 

of  interest,  in  what  subjects  they  are  doing  their  poorest 
teaching. 

4.  To  reveal  to  teachers  those  outside  interests  of 
pupils,  which  may  be  utilized  in  arousing  interest  in 
school  work  that  has  unfortunately  become  distasteful. 

On  pages  16  and  17  is  given  a  tabular  view  of  the  re- 
sults obtained  in  regard  to  the  investigations  of  pupils' 
likes  and  dislikes  of  school  studies,  in  which  subjects  of 
the  curriculum  are  arranged  in  the  order  of  preference 
as  correctly  as  possible. 

A  word  of  explanation  is,"  however,  necessary.  Geog- 
raphy is  not  taught  beyond  the  middle  of  the  seventh 
grade,  nor  writing  beyond  the  sixth,  nor  history,  by  text- 
book, in  any  but  the  seventh  and  eighth  grades,  nor  civil 
government  in  any  but  senior  eighth  grade.  Hence  an 
exact  average  of  all  these  studies  cannot  be  tabulated, 
although  in  the  case  of  geography  it  is  approximately 
correct. 

The  average  age  of  each  grade  can  be  approximated 
by  adding  six  to  the  grade;  e.g.,  third  grade  pupils  aver- 
age about  nine  years,  etc. 

ARITHMETIC  FIRST  CHOICE 

A  study  of  the  table  presented  discloses  many  inter- 
esting facts,  some  familiar  and  some  otherwise.  Every 
observing  teacher  is  familiar  with  the  fact  that  boys 
generally  prefer  .arithmetic,  while  girls  usually  are  more 
interested  in  geography  and  language. 

Our  table  shows  that  arithmetic  heads  the  list  for  both 
boys  and  girls,  the  boys  having  a  constantly  increasing 
per  cent,  beginning  with  thirty  in  the  third  grade  and 
ending  with  fifty  in  the  eighth  grade,  or  an  average  of 


IN   THE   SCHOOL-ROOM  19 

thirty-eight  per  cent,  while  the  girls  begin  with  twenty- 
eight  in  third  grade  and  end  with  thirty-nine  in  eighth 
grade,  or  an  average  of  thirty-four  per  cent. 

What  about  the  teachers'  preferences  ?  They  have,  as 
might  be  anticipated  from  the  high  per  cent  of  girls' 
preferences  for  arithmetic,  a  more  decided  leaning  toward 
that  subject  than  their  pupils,  beginning  with  thirty-five 
per  cent  in  the  third  grade  and  ending  with  sixty-two  per 
cent  in  eighth  grade,  or  an  average  of  forty-nine  per  cent 
throughout. 

Here,  no  doubt,  teachers'  preferences  have  much  to  do 
in  shaping  pupils'  preferences,  but  the  high  per  cent  on 
part  of  pupils  is  not  wholly  due  to  the  teacher's  love  of 
the  subject.  There  is  a  kind  of  fascination  which  grows 
out  of  the  exactness  in  the  operations  of  arithmetic.  The 
pupil  is  lured  on  to  storm  the  strongholds  of  his  prob- 
lems, and  capture  the  answers  as  trophies  of  his  skill,  as 
the  soldier  by  the  honors  and  spoils  of  war. 

Then,  too,  there  is  the  common  delusion  that  arith- 
metic is  the  most  practical  of  studies,  because  it  affords 
such  excellent  training  for  the  reasoning  powers,  when 
the  fact  is  that  there  is  but  little  use  for  such  exact  reason- 
ing, since  conclusions  in  real  life  are  reached  almost  en- 
tirely through  the  balancing  of  probabilities. 

GEOGRAPHY,  SECOND 

The  subject  next  highest  in  favor  is  geography.  Here 
the  boys  again  lead  the  girls.  The  per  cents  do  not 
increase  as  uniformly  as  in  arithmetic,  but  the  decrease 
in  seventh  grade  —  the  highest  grade  in  which  geography 
is  taught  —  is  clue  to  the  fact  that  it  is  only  taught  the 
first  half  of  that  grade.  The  maximum  of  pupils'  prefer- 


20  STUDIES   AND   OBSERVATIONS 

ences  is  reached  in  sixth  grade,  that  of  teachers'  in  fourth 
Nevertheless,  pupils'  preferences  follow  pretty  closely  on 
that  of  the  teachers',  although  averages  run  as  follows: 
teachers,  twenty  per  cent;  boys,  twenty-nine  per  cent;  girh, 
twenty-two  per  cent. 

Had  such  an  investigation  as  this  been  made  no  longer 
than  ten  years  ago,  geography  would  not  have  ranked 
second  in  pupils'  preferences,  but  at  the  foot  of  the  list. 
It  was  then  presented  as  a  mass  of  disconnected  facts, 
and  only  appealed  to  the  carrying  power  of  the  memory, 
upon  which  it  attempted  to  place  intolerable  burdens. 
We  now  build  our  geographical  structure  upon  a  few 
fundamental  ideas,  such  as  topography,  etc.,  interpret  the 
unseen  by  the  seen,  make  it  a  study  of  causes  and  effects, 
a  thought,  instead  of  a  memory  study,  and  presto!  it 
becomes  one  of  £he  most  interesting  studies  of  the  public 
school  curriculum. 

UNITED  STATES  HISTORY,  THIRD 

United  States  History  ranks  third  on  the  list,  but  since 
it  is  only  formally  studied  in  seventh  and  eighth  grades, 
but  little  can  be  said  about  it.  History  seems  to  have 
some  strong  characteristics,  for  while  it  ranks  third  in 
teachers'  preferences,  it  ranks  second  in  their  dislikes. 
The  boys'  preferences  exceed  the  girls'  in  the  ratio  of 
two  to  one. 

The  fact  that  history  ranks  third  in  the  preferred  list, 
and  because  it  deals  with  human  actions  and  relations, 
and  possesses  therefore  much  rich  material  for  character 
building,  suggests  that  the  present  movement  introducing 
history  into  all  the  grades  —  in  the  form  of  simple  biog- 
raphy in  the  primaries  —  has  much  to  commend  it. 


IN  THK   SCHOOL-ROOM 


LANGUAGE,  FOURTH 

Language,  including  grammar  in  seventh  and  eighth 
grades,  is  given  fourth  place  by  teachers  and  girls,  but 
drops  to  seventh  place  in  the  boys'  preferences.  The 
teachers'  preferences  average  sixteen  per  cent,  the  girls' 
twelve  per  cent,  while  the  boys'  drop  to  four  per  cent. 
The  maximum  per  cent  of  preference  is  reached  by  both 
boys  and  girls  in  the  eighth  grade,  or  in  the  study  of 
grammar.  In  the  case  of  the  girls  there  was  a  gradually 
increasing  appreciation  from  the  lowest  to  the  highest 
grade.  The  teachers'  maximum  was  reached  in  the  sixth 
grade.  It  is  gratifying  to  note  the  increasing  appreciation 
of  this  important  subject  among  the  pupils  as  they  ap- 
proach the  higher  grades. 

READING,  FIFTH 

Reading  comes  fifth  in  the  list,  but  pupils  lead  the 
teachers.  Boys  and  girls  each  attain  eight  per  cent, 
while  the  teachers  only  reach  six  per  cent.  What  is  a 
matter  of  some  concern,  is  the  decreasing  per  cent  of 
preference  for  reading  as  pupils  advance  in  the  grades. 
Does  reading  become  more  and  more  a  perfunctory 
process?  Has  familiarity  with  the  selections  driven 
nearly  all  inspiration  out  of  them?  Do  we  need  fresher 
selections?  Is  reading  not  well  taught?  We  do  not 
wish  to  make  any  hasty  generalizations,  so  put  these 
suggestions  in  the  form  of  questions. 

Spelling  ranks  sixth  in  pupils'  preferences,  with  an 
average  of  eight  per  cent  for  the  boys  and  nine  per  cent 
for  the  girls,  but  preferred  by  none  of  the  teachers. 

Physiology  holds  sixth  place  in  teachers'  preferences, 


22  STUDIES   AND   OBSERVATIONS 

and  eighth  among  the  pupils.  Only  three  per  cent  of 
both  boys  and  girls  regard  this  subject  with  favor.  Strange 
that  the  study  which  ought  to  appeal  to  the  pupils  as 
eminently  useful  and  practical,  should  be  regarded  with 
so  little  favor!  It  suggests  the  inquiry  whether  teachers 
have  tried  to  impress  upon  pupils  the  practical  benefits 
of  this  study. 

Music,  drawing  and  writing  are  last  in  the  list,  and 
preferred  by  none  of  the  teachers.  The  pupils'  prefer- 
ences run  as  follows :  music,  boys,  three  per  cent ;  girls, 
seven  per  cent ;  drawing,  boys,  two  per  cent ;  girls,  three 
per  cent;  writing,  boys,  one  per  cent;  girls,  one  per 
cent. 

There  was  internal  evidence  in  the  answers  that  some 
boys  have  unfortunately  dropped  into  the  error  of  re- 
garding proficiency  in  music  as  a  feminine  accomplish- 
ment, and  therefore  unworthy  the  studious  attention  of 
the  superior  masculine  intellect.  This  fear  of  descend- 
ing ( ?)  into  woman's  sphere,  and,  in  consequence  mani- 
festing feminine  characteristics,  only  alarms,  as  a  rule, 
the  weak,  effeminate  boy,  who  is  in  constant  fear  of  be- 
traying his  effeminacy,  just  as  the  bully,  desiring  to  have 
courage  imputed  to  him  which  he  does  not  possess, 
strives  to  counterfeit  courage  by  swagger  and  bluster. 

Civil  Government,  since  it  occupies  less  than  a  half 
year  in  the  eighth  grade,  furnishes  but  little  basis  for 
comparison.  The  per  cents  of  preference  are:  boys,  nine; 
girls  and  teachers,  none.  This  lack  of  interest  on  the  part 
of  girls  and  teachers  is  not  surprising,  when  we  remember 
that  the  present  unjust  disfranchisement  of  women  de- 
prives them  of  one  of  the  highest  incentives  to  master 
this  subject. 


IN  THE  SCHOOL-ROOM  23 

ORDER  OF  DISLIKES 

A  glance  at  dislikes  in  school  studies  discloses  the  fact 
that  pupils  do  not  follow  teachers  as  closely  here  as  in 
preferences.  Twenty-six  per  cent  of  the  teachers  dislike 
drawing,  the  highest  per  cent  of  dislikes  among  the 
teachers,  while  the  pupils  reach  the  highest  per  cent  of 
dislikes  in  arithmetic.  It  should  be  recalled  in  this  con- 
nection, that  arithmetic  also  attained  the  highest  per  cent 
of  "preferences,  which  indicates  that  it  must  have  strong 
characteristics. 

Briefly  the  order  of  dislikes  of  teachers  as  shown  in  per 
cents  runs  as  follows :  history,  twenty-two ;  spelling,  six- 
teen; physiology,  sixteen;  music,  eleven;  writing,  nine; 
arithmetic,  six ;  language,  six ;  reading,  three ;  geography, 
two.  Pupils'  dislikes  given  in  per  cents  are:  arithmetic, 
boys,  fourteen;  girls,  twenty-four;  language,  boys,  nine- 
teen ;  girls,  fourteen ;  spelling,  boys,  seventeen ;  girls,  nine ; 
physiology,  boys,  eight ;  girls,  sixteen ;  music,  boys,  four- 
teen; girls,  four;  drawing,  boys,  nine;  girls,  nine;  geog- 
raphy, boys,  six;  girls,  twelve;  history,  boys,  three;  girls, 
ten;  reading,  boys,  six;  girls,  four;  writing,  boys,  four; 
pdrls,  four. 

REASONS  ASSIGNED 

The  reasons  assigned  for  likes  and  dislikes  afforded  an 
interesting  study  of  which  only  a  few  results  can  be  given. 
The  most  common  reason  given  for  liking  a  study  was  the 
one  that  it  was  "easy."  Twenty-five  per  cent  of  all  the 
pupils  gave  this  reason.  It  was  gratifying,  however,  to 
notice  that  the  highest  per  cent  was  in  the  third  grade, 
the  lowest  canvassed,  where  it  reached  thirty-three  per  cent. 

As  a  wholesome  contrast  to  this,  quite  a  respectable 


24  STUDIES   AND    OBSERVATIONS 

number  assigned  as  a  reason  for  liking  a  study  that  it 
was  "hard,"  and  here  the  highest  per  cent  was  in  the 
highest  grades.  Twelve  per  cent  assigned  "interesting" 
as  a  reason,  and  ten  per  cent  "useful."  In  both  cases, 
the  highest  per  cents  were  found  in  the  highest  grades, 
as  would  be  anticipated.  Other  general  reasons  for 
preferences  which  were  quite  frequently  assigned  were 
"Important";  "  Understand  it  best ";  "  Makes  you  think  "; 
"Can  get  a  high  standing  in  it,"  etc. 

In  the  dislikes,  prejudices  often  afforded  the  foundation 
for  them,  as,  "No  sense  in  it";  "Can't  get  it";  "Have 
no  talent  for  it" ;  " Can't  get  it  through  my  head."  Such 
answers  as  these  suggest  that  a  duty  may  rest  upon 
teachers  in  the  direction  of  ascertaining  and  overcoming, 
wherever  possible,  such  prejudices  of  pupils.  They  cer- 
tainly block  the  way  to  interest  and  progress. 

A  few  of  the  characteristic  reasons  for  likes  and  dislikes 
are  given  in  connection  with  the  subjects  of  study  for  or 
against  which  they  were  urged.  One  pupil's  objection 
to  civil  government  was  voiced  in  the  following  manner: 
"I  don't  care  anything  about  elections."  It  requires  no 
special  power  of  discernment  to  conclude  that  this  ob- 
jection came  from  a  girl.  The  objections  to  drawing  ran 
largely  in  these  channels :  " I  can't  draw  well."  "I  don't 
expect  to  become  an  artist."  "It  will  not  help  me  to 
earn  a  living." 

Writing  came  in  for  a  fair  share  of  criticism.  A  common 
lower  grade  objection  was  the  blots  which  so  offended 
the  youthful  mind.  Another  and  more  common  objec- 
tion was  found  in  the  tediousness  of  so  much  writing  in 
connection  with  other  subjects  of  study.  Possibly  there 
is  some  ground  for  this  criticism. 


IN   THE   SCHOOL-ROOM  25 

Reading  called  forth  objections  like  these:  " There  are 
so  many  to  read."  "I  get  tired  standing."  "You  have 
to  keep  the  place  all  the  time." 

Physiology  was  characterized  as  "disgusting,"  "horri- 
ble." "I  do  not  like  to  study  about  people  who  use 
narcotics  when  they  ought  not." 

Grammar  called  forth  these  comments:  "When  a  per- 
son uses  correct  grammar,  you  have  more  respect  for 
him."  "I  can  say  what  I  want  to  and  make  people 
understand  me  without  learning  synopsis  and  conjuga- 
tion of  verbs."  "I  don't  see  what  good  it  does  to  learn 
all  those  rules  and  things." 

Music:  "Brightens  my  other  studies,  and  makes  .me 
happy."  "My  voice  is  not  sweet."  "Generally  of  no 
good  to  a  boy." 

History:  "Helps  to  guide  people  in  the  future  to  govern 
the  country."  "Has  too  many  dates  to  remember." 

Arithmetic:  "Don't  let  you  think  of  anything  else." 
"Pleasant  to  work  for  an  answer."  "Makes  my  brains 
stronger."  "Makes  the  blood  circulate  the  most."  "I 
enjoy  thinking  out  a  hard  problem.  It  gives  me  pleasure 
to  find  I  have  solved  it  correctly  —  something  of  the  same 
feeling  that  one  has  when  standing  on  the  summit  of  a 
mountain  after  having  climbed  it  to  get  a-  view." 

LIKES  AND  DISLIKES  OUTSIDE  OF  SCHOOL 

The  likes  and  dislikes  of  pupils  of  work  to  be  done  out 
of  school,  cover  a  wide  field  and  are  hard  to  summarize. 
Their  chief  value  lies  in  revealing  to  each  teacher  the 
possible  starting  point  for  more  deeply  interesting  in 
school  work  those  indifferent  pupils  who  are  not  inter- 
ested in  their  studies.  Such  a  study  also  affords  an 


26  STUDIES   AND    OBSERVATIONS 

interesting  glimpse  of  the  trend  which  modern  children's 
ideas  are  taking  in  reference  to  home  duties. 

The  boys  have  no  very  decided  preference  for  any 
kinds  of  work  outside  of  school;  however,  that  is  not  a 
discovery  of  modern  Child  Study.  Eight  per  cent  like 
doing  chores,  and  two  per  cent  running  errands.  Among 
the  girls,  fifteen  per  cent  express  preference  for  various 
forms  of  housework,  in  which  sewing,  however,  heads 
the  list.  Tending  the  baby  reaches  four  per  cent,  and 
practicing  on  the  piano,  seven  per  cent. 

REASONS  ASSIGNED 

Some  of  the  characteristic  replies  for  liking  certain 
kinds  of  work  are  as  follows:  "I  like  housework  because 
girls  ought  to  know  how  to  do  it."  Sensible  mother  to 
instill  such  wholesome  ideas  into  her  daughter's  mind. 
"You  can't  tell  when  you  may  be  called  upon  to  do 
housework."  That's  good  sense,  too.  "I  like  herding 
because  there's  money  in  it."  Presumably  that  boy  will' 
prove  a  money  maker,  as  the  business  instinct  crops  out 
early. 

"I  like  to  help  mamma  because  it  makes  her  feel  good, 
and  it  makes  me  feel  good,  too."  This  little  girl  has 
early  learned  the  secret  of  happiness.  ''Getting  up  early 
and  making  the  fires  makes  a  man  healthy  and  wise." 
Why  not  inspire  our  boys  to  perform  unpleasant  duties 
cheerfully,  because  such  an  attitiude  under  the  law  of 
compensation  will  receive  its  sure  reward?  "If  you  do 
hate  anything,  you  will  always  have  to  do  it  the 
most."  Therefore,  don't  hate  any  duty,  seems  to  be  the 
conclusion. 

About  two- fifths  of  the  boys  have  a  very  decided  aver- 


IN   THE   SCHOOL-ROOM  27 

sion  to  doing  chores,  taking  care  of  baby,  sawing  wood,- 
milking,  running  errands,  and  the  thousand  and  one  other 
things  for  which  they  are  commonly  supposed  to  be  speci- 
ally adapted.  One  gives  utterance  to  his  woes  by  saying, 
"I  have  to  chase  after  my  little  brother,  who  runs  away 
two  or  three  times  a  day."  Another  sets  forth  his  sad 
complaint  against  milking:  "You  get  kicked,  and  have 
milk  spilled  all  over  you." 

The  girls  do  not  seem  to  take  kindly  to  housekeeping. 
Some  varieties  of  housework,  such  as  cooking,  making 
beds,  sweeping,  dusting,  come  in  for  only  a  moderate 
share  of  criticism,  but  there  is  a  severe  and  wholesale 
condemnation  of  washing  dishes.  Notice  the  character- 
istic expressions.  Washing  dishes  is  warm,  hot,  wet, 
hard,  monotonous,  tiresome,  disagreeable,  not  amusing, 
mussy,  sloppy,  dirty,  greasy  work. 

All  kinds  of  reasons  are  assigned  for  disliking  dish- 
washing. Here  are  a  few  of  them:  "Washing  dishes 
makes  me  tired."  "Makes  my  head  ache."  "Makes 
my  fingers  ache."  "Makes  my  back  ache."  "Makes 
my  feet  ache."  These  aches  from  head  to  foot  as  a  result 
of  dish  washing  are  sad  to  contemplate. 

But  these  do  not  include  all  the  serious  ills  directly 
charged  to  dish  washing.  "Makes  my  hands  feel  so 
queer."  "Swells  my  fingers."  "Makes  my  hands  tan 
and  enlarges  the  joints."  "Don't  like  to  have  my  hands 
in  greasy  dish  water."  "Makes  me  sick."  "Makes  me 
catch  cold."  "Had  rather  visit  with  the  company." 
"I  don't  seem  to  take  to  it."  "Washing  dishes  is  always 
the  same  thing."  "The  dishes  get  muddy  again  right 
away."  "I  have  done  it  ever  since  I  was  seven  years 
old.  It  is  very  dirty  work.  If  I  ever  get  married,  I  will 


28  STUDIES    AND    OBSERVATIONS 

have  a  servant  to  wash  my  dishes."     "I  always  did  hate 
washing  dishes,  and  I  always  will,  I  guess." 

This  gives  a  dreary  outlook  for  the  future  of  house- 
keeping. Must  we  become  more  and  more  dependent 
on  the  already  too  independent  yet  non-dependable  ser- 
vant girl?  Is  our  boasted  twentieth  century  civilization 
to  be  baffled  in  its  attempts  at  solution  of  the,  housekeep- 
ing problem?  These  will  prove  highly  distracting  ques- 
tions, did  we  not  see  our  possible  salvation  from  these 
misfortunes  in  the  rapid  introduction  of  domestic  science 
departments  into  the  public  schools.  These  are  training 
up  intelligent  housekeepers  and  homekeepers,  and  thus 
lifting  such  work  out  of  the  field  of  drudgery  into  the 
realm  of  intelligent,  skillful  accomplishment. 

SUMMARY 

To  summarize  briefly: 

1 .  This  particular  study  presented  convincing  evidence 
to  the  teachers  that  their  preferences  did  more  largely 
influence  the  preferences  of  their  pupils  than  they  had 
supposed,  that  their  thought,  energy  and  skill  were  more 
largely  concentrated  on  these  preferred  studies  than  they 
were  conscious  of,  and  thus  put  them  in  the  judicial 
frame  of  mind  towards  the  proper  amount  of  emphasis 
to  be  given  each  school  subject. 

2.  It  led  the  teachers  to  look  carefully  into  the  causes 
of  lack  of  interest  on  the  part  of  pupils,  whether  they  in 
their    interest    and    enthusiasm    in    teaching    preferred 
studies,  had  not  neglected  to  throw  even  extra  energy 
into  the  teaching  of  less  inspiring  subjects  of  the  school 
curriculum.     It  brought  home  to  the  individual  teacher 
a  sense  of  responsibility  for  her  pupils7  indifference  or 


IN   THE   SCHOOL-ROOM  29 

dislikes  and  the  need  of  a  better,  more  inspiring  presenta- 
tion of  the  distasteful,  or  uninteresting  subjects. 

3.  In  some  instances,  pupils  who  were  entirely  out  of 
harmony  with  their  school  work,  were  gradually  inter- 
ested in  some  few  lines  of  school  work,  through  the  es- 
tablishing of  points  of  contact  between  school  work  and 
the    interesting    work    outside.     Of    course    this    meant 
ignoring  the  course  of  study  for  the  boys,  but  it  was 
nevertheless  a  plain  duty. 

4.  The  most  helpful  results  of  such  investigations  as 
the  foregoing  are  the  extrication  of  each  pupil  from  the 
mass,    and    a    more    thorough,    thoughtful,    sympathetic 
study  of  him  as  an  individual,  or  the  careful  noting  of 
those   peculiar  traits  which  make  up  his  individuality, 
and  the  establishment,  in  consequence,  of  those  more 
intimate  and   companionable  relations  between  teacher 
and  pupil  which  are  so  essential  to  the  attainment  of  the 
highest  efficiency  in  school  work. 


CHAPTER   III 

CHILDREN'S  KNOWLEDGE  WHEN  ENTERING 
SCHOOL 

PURPOSE  AND  PLAN 

The  following  study,  based  on  a  similar  investigation 
made  by  Dr.  Hall,  was  taken  up  for  the  purpose  of  ac- 
quainting our  primary  teachers  with  what  stock  of  knowl- 
edge the  children,  aged  about  five  years,  first  entered 
school.  It  is  a  matter  of  some  importance  to  the  primary 
teacher  what  knowledge  the  child  has  gained  in  his  pre- 
school life,  what  foundations  are  already  laid,  what  the  stock 
of  knowledge  is  to  which  she  is  to  add.  Time  must  not 
be  wasted  in  teaching  that  which  is  already  known,  nor 
on  the  other  hand  must  there  be  connecting  links  left 
out  in  going  from  the  child's  known  to  his  related 
unknown. 

The  questions  were  designed  to  draw  out  the  child's 
knowledge  of  number,  color,  his  power  of  observation, 
how  well  he  has  stored  his  mind  with  general  ideas  of 
things  seen  every  day. 

Only  one  hundred  fifty- three  children  were  interrogated, 
but  they  were  typical  children  and  from  all  parts  of  the 
city,  so  that  they  fairly  represented  the  average.  They 
were  questioned  the  first  day  of  their  school  life,  each 
separately,  so  that  the  replies  of  one  could  not  influence 
the  replies  of  others.  The  results  were,  in  some  instances, 

30 


IX    THK    SCHOOL-ROOM  .}' 

surprising,  but  always  interesting  and  instructive  to  the 
teachers. 

QUESTIONS  AND  PER  CENTS 

These  were  the  questions  asked  and  the  per  cent  of 
correct  answers  is  given  after  each  question: 

1.  Pick  out  two  objects,  ninety-five  per  cent.     Four 
objects,  sixty-nine  per  cent.     Three  objects,  seventy-six 
per  cent. 

2.  What  is  a  brook?    Eighteen  per  cent. 

3.  What  is  a  pond?     Fifty-four  per  cent. 

4.  What  is  a  river?     Eighty-one  per  cent. 

5.  What  is  a  hill?     Seventy-eight  per  cent. 

6.  What  is  dew?     Fifteen  per  cent. 

7.  What  season  is  this?     Forty-eight  per  cent. 

8.  Have  you  seen  the  sun  rise  ?     Sixty-nine  per  cent. 

9.  Have  you  seen  the  moon?    Ninety-two  per  cent. 

10.  Where  are  the  stars?     Eighty-six  per  cent. 

11.  Pick  out  a  green  card,  seventy-nine  per  cent;    a 
blue  card,  seventy-three  per  cent;   a  red  card,  eighty-six 
per  cent. 

12.  Which  is  your  right  hand  ?     Seventy-one  per  cent. 

13.  Where  is  your  cheek?     Seventy-one  per  cent. 

14.  What  is  a  frog?    Fifty-seven  percent. 

15.  What  is  a  chicken?     Seventy-nine  per  cent. 

16.  What  is  a  cow?     Seventy-six  per  cent. 

17.  What  is  a  tree?     Sixty-three  per  cent. 

1 8.  Where  does  corn  grow?     Fifty-six  per  cent. 

19.  Where  do  pears  grow?    Fifty- two  per  cent. 

20.  Where  do  beans  grow?     Forty-seven  per  cent. 

21.  Where  do  potatoes  grow?     Sixty-nine  per  cent. 

22.  Where  do  apples  grow?    Eighty  per  cent. 


32  STUDIES   AND   OBSERVATIONS 

23.  Where  does  milk  come  from  ?     Eighty-six  per  cent. 

24.  From  what  is  leather  made?     Ten  per  cent. 

25.  From  what  is  flour  made  ?     Sixteen  per  cent. 

26.  Where  does  wood  come  from?     Fifty  per  cent. 

27.  Where  does  ham  come  from?     Sixteen  per  cent. 

28.  From  what  is  butter  made?    Forty-six  per  cent. 

29.  From  what  is  your  coat  or  dress  made?     Sixty 
per  cent. 

30.  Where  is  God?     Eighty-nine  per  cent. 

31.  What  is  right?     Forty-seven  per  cent. 

32.  What  is  a  school?     Seventy- three  per  cent. 

In  regard  to  number,  ninety-five  per  cent  of  these 
beginners  knew  the  number  two,  and  seventy-five  per 
cent  the  number  three.  This  led  our  primary  teachers 
to  the  conclusion  that  they  had  been  wasting  some  time 
in  their  attempts  to  develop  gradually  correct  ideas  of 
these  numbers. 

That  only  eighteen  per  cent  of  them  gave  correct 
answers  to  What  is  a  brook?  is  probably  explained  by 
the  fact  that  brook  is  not  a  familiar  word  in  the  children's 
vocabulary.  One  replied:  "A  stream  of  water."  An- 
other, "  Water  that  has  flies  on."  Another,  who  evi- 
dently wished  to  be  very  exact  said,  "A  little  thing  that 
water  runs  in." 

CHARACTERISTIC  REPLIES 

Some  characteristic  replies  to  What  is  a  pond?  were: 
"Wrhere  there  are  frogs."  "  Round  and  water  stays  in 
it."  "A  place  where  brother  fishes."  "A  flood."  "A 
great  big  one  where  water  stays." 

That  only  seventy-eight  per  cent  knew  what  a  hill  was 
is  surprising,  but  that  only  sixty-nine  per  cent  knew  that 


OF  THE 

(  UNIVERSITY 

- 

%^£4L>! 
IN    THE   SOTOOL-koOM 

they  had  ever  seen  the  sun  rise,  is  still  more  surprising. 
Some  interesting  answers  concerning  the  hill  were:  "A 
steep  place."  "Big  steep  dirt."  "A  place  to  slide  down 
on."  "A  big,  big  place  of  earth."  The  following  de- 
scription is  highly  recommended  for  its  terseness:  "A 
hill  is  a  bump." 

Dew  was  described  as  "Wet  on  the  grass."  "Frost." 
"Is  misty."  "Sprinkles." 

Where  are  the  stars?  was  generally  correctly  answered. 
A  few  peculiar  replies  are  given:  "The  stars  are  in  a 
paper."  "Up  in  the  moon."  "By  our  house."  "Up 
to  Jesus/' 

More  than  one- fourth  did  not  know  the  right  hand  from 
the  left,  nor  where  their  cheeks  were.  Fundamental  ideas 
of  direction  and  location  may  be  unexpectedly  wanting 
in  some  children. 

The  replies  to  What  is  a  frog?  were  in  some  cases 
unique,  as:  "A  hop  toad."  "A  hopping  thing."  "A 
jumper."  "Like  a  nigger."  "Something  that  can  eat 
you  up." 

Some  characteristic  descriptions  of  the  chicken  were: 
"Got  feathers  on."  "Is  good  to  eat."  "Makes  eggs." 
"Can  lay  eggs  and  wear  feathers." 

In  case  of  the  cow:  "It  has  a  tail."  "Got  hair  on." 
"It's  a  bossy."  "It  hooks  people."  "Something  like 
a  mule  with  horns."  In  the  last  answer  it  is  not  difficult 
to  guess  at  the  origin  of  the  "apperception  mass." 

In  answer  to  What  is  a  tree?  the  following  replies 
were  typical:  "It  got  roots  and  limbs."  "It  is  to  sit 
under."  "It  is  to  climb  up  on."  "Trees  make  the 
wind  blow."  Subsequent  investigations  have  shown  that 
many  children  entertain  the  idea,  that,  instead  of  the 


34  STUDIES    AND    OBSERVATIONS 

wind  causing  the  trees  to  sway  back  and  forth,  the  trees, 
as  huge  fans,  cause  the  wind  to  blow. 

There  was  much  misinformation  as  to  where  beans 
grow.  Some  said,  " Under  the  ground";  others,  "On 
trees";  and  still  others,  "At  the  store."  Even  potatoes 
were  supposed  by  some  to  grow  on  trees,  and  one  pupil 
very  emphatically  said,  "Potatoes  don't  grow." 

A  large  number  of  children  thought,  for  obvious  reasons, 
that  milk  came  from  the  milkman. 

The  origin  of  leather  was  the  most  difficult  question. 
Nine- tenths  of  them  were  uninformed,  although  these 
questions  were  asked  in  a  city  where  very  large  packing- 
houses were  located.  One  mentioned  wood,  another 
rubber,  and  one  said,  "Out  of  a  kangaroo."  Some  of 
the  children  seemed  to  have  some  knowledge  of  the  tricks 
of  the  leather  industry  and  answered,  "Paper." 

There  was  much  confusion  and  difference  of  opinion 
as  to  what  flour  was  made  from.  All  kinds  of  raw  ma- 
terial were  mentioned,  such  as,  snow,  grass,  salt,  yeast, 
paper,  eggs,  milk,  corn,  etc. 

The  sources  from  which  wood  came  were  quite  varied: 
"From  the  coal  office."  "From  the  river."  (Presum- 
ably driftwood.)  "From  chopped  down  trees."  One 
boy  broadly  put  it,  "God  made  it." 

For  a  packing  house  city  it  was  surprising  that  not 
more  than  sixteen  per  cent  knew  where  ham  came  from. 
Several  stated  that  it  came  from  lard,  some  from  the  store, 
others  from  the  packing  house.  One  pupil  believed  that 
ham  came  from  "killed  cows." 

The  origin  of  butter  was  easier,  nearly  half  were  cor- 
rectly informed.  There  were,  however,  some  answers 
which  indicated  serious  misconceptions,  as:  "From  the 


IX   THE   SCHOOL-ROOM  35 

churn."  "From  buttermilk."  "Lard."  "  Grease." 
"Apples." 

One  boy  stated  frankly  that  his  coat  was  made  of  rags. 
Presumably  he  referred  to  a  process  of  rejuvenation  of 
the  coat  handed  down  by  his  worthy  sire. 

In  asking  Where  is  God?  it  was  not  anticipated  that 
any  profound  acquaintance  with  theology  would  be  dis- 
closed. All  that  was  sought,  was  to  ascertain  whether 
the  simple  idea  of  God's  existence  somewhere  in  heaven 
was  accepted.  Nearly  all  seemed  to  hold  such  an  idea. 
A  few  put  it  differently,  however.  "One  said,  "In  an- 
other world."  Another,  "Upon  the  hill."  Still  another, 
"Up  in  the  moon."  One  rather  naively  put  it,  "God  is 
in  my  prayer." 

There  were  various  ideas  as  to  What  is  right  ?  but  gen- 
erally expressed  by  some  specific  act.  In  the  case  of 
the  girls, right  was  to  "mind  mamma,"  "to  behave,"  "to 
set  the  table,"  to  do  things  pertaining  to  neatness  and 
order,  while  the  boys  mentioned  gross  forms  of  mis- 
conduct to  be  refrained  from,  such  as:  "Not  to  run  away." 
"Not  to  swear."  "Not  to  lie  or  steal." 

The  last  question,  What  is  a  school?  brought  out  a 
variety  of  interesting  replies.  Several  made  the  school 
identical  with  the  school-house.  Quite  a  number  ex- 
pressed their  views  in  the  old  fashioned  nomenclature, 
declaring  the  school  to  be  "To  show  you  a,  b,  c."  One 
characterized  it  as  the  place  "Where  children  come." 
A  large  number  thought  it  a  place  "to  learn  lessons," 
"to  spell  and  read."  One,  in  rather  a  surprised  tone, 
declared,  "Why,  it's  here."  One  urchin  evidently  bor- 
rowed his  ideas  from  that  small  class  of  parents  who  are 
pleased  to  send  their  children  to  school  to  get  rid  of  the 


36  STUDIES   AND    OBSERVATIONS 

responsibility  of  looking  after  them,  and  promptly  piped 
up,  "The  school  is  to  put  little  kids  in." 

"Delightful  task  to  rear  the  tender  thought, 
To  teach  the  young  idea  how  to  shoot." 

Who  is  it  that  does  not  long  to  be  a  primary  teacher  ? 

RESULTS 

Concede  that  the  foregoing  investigation  furnishes  only 
an  occasion  for  a  little  amusement  and  a  few  possible 
hints  or  suggestions  to  primary  teachers  for  the  present. 
These,  with  other  investigations,  may  furnish  some  data 
in  time,  which  may  lead  to  fruitful  generalizations  about 
the  child. 

Ever  since  Bacon  set  the  fashion  for  careful,  accurate, 
scientific  investigation  of  Nature's  secrets,  man,  with 
scalpel  and  microscope,  has  been  searching  everywhere. 
Almost  everything  under  the  sun  has  been  pried  into, 
whether  it  offered  any  immediate  prospect  of  benefit  or 
not. 

We  have  no  quarrel  to  make  with  that  spirit,  for  we 
remember  that  Galvani's  minute  investigations  into  ani- 
mal electricity,  a  century  ago, -seemed  utterly  valueless, 
and  only  called  forth  the  derisive  title  of  "frog's  dancing 
master,"  and  yet  this  wonderful  age  of  electricity  is  the 
legitimate  outcome  of  those  investigations. 

When  we  thus  understand  that  no  facts  can  be  regarded 
as  insignificant,  but  that  all  careful  investigation  will, 
in  the  mind  of  some  Morse,  Edison,  Marconi  or  Koch, 
be  made  fruitful,  we  can  heartily  commend  such  in- 
vestigations in  whatever  field. 

Amidst  all  this  spirit  of  investigation,  it  seems  strange 


IN- THE   SCHOOI^-ROOM  '37 

that  but  little  effort  has  been  expended,  until  recently, 
in  a  careful,  systematic  study  of  the  child.  The  last 
decade  or  so  has  seen,  however,  a  marked  change  in  this 
respect.  Now,  every  fact  concerning  the  growth  and 
development  of  the  threefold  nature  of  the  child  is  being 
recorded,  no  matter  how  insignificant  or  useless  it  may 
seem.  It  is  believed  that  out  of  this  large  mass  of  facts 
which  is  being  collected  from  so  many  sources,  some 
thinker  or  philosopher,  with  keen  vision  and  power  to 
generalize,  will  discover  relations,  will  trace  out  prin- 
ciples and  laws  where  now  none  are  perceived.  This  is 
the  faith  that  incites  the  author  to  publish  what  may  be 
deemed  at  present  insignificant  details  concerning  the 
children.  The  right  perspective  is  not  at  present  posi- 
tively settled. 


CHAPTER   IV 

PRIMARY   PUPILS'   IDEAS   OF  CONDUCT  AND 
PUNISHMENT 

PLAN 

In  taking  up  the  study  of  the  primary  pupils'  ideas  of 
conduct  and  punishment,  the  following  suggestions  were 
made  to  th?  primary  teachers: 

Read  over  twice  to  your  pupils  the  following  story, 
and  then  ask  them  to  write  answers  to  the  two  questions 
given  at  the  close  of  the  story.  Do  not  aid  the  pupils, 
or  try  to  influence  their  thought.  Endeavor  to  secure 
an  unprejudiced  expression  of  their  ideas  of  proper  con- 
duct and  punishment. 

THE  STORY  OF  CHARLIE 

Little  Charlie,  one  day  in  school,  while  all  the  children 
were  busy  on  their  number  work,  threw  down  his  pencil 
and  said  in  a  loud,  cross  voice,  "It's  no  use.  I  can't  do 
this  number  work." 

The  children  all  looked  up  and  were  very  much  sur- 
prised that  any  one  should  talk  out  loud  in  that  cross 
way.  His  teacher  said  pleasantly  and  encouragingly, 
"Don't  give  up,  Charlie.  Please  try  again.  I'm  sure 
you  can  do  it." 

Charlie  said  in  a  defiant  way,  "I  don't  care,  I  won't 

try  again." 

38 


IN   THE   SCHOOL-ROOM  39 

The  Two  Questions 

What  do  you  think  of  Charlie  ? 

What  should  the  teacher  have  done  with  him? 

Answers  were  received  from  ten  hundred  twenty-one 
pupils  whose  ages  ranged  from  five  to  seven  years. 

WHAT  FIRST  GRADES  THOUGHT  OF  CHARLIE 

Out  of  three  hundred  first  grade  pupils,  two  hundred 
eight  said,  "Charlie  was  a  bad  boy."  Sixty-four  char- 
acterized him,  "A  naughty  boy."  Eighteen,  "A  mean 
boy."  One  each:  "Not  a  nice  boy."  "Not  right." 
"Was  mad."  "Very,  very  bad  boy."  " Pretty  bad  boy." 
"An  awful  disgraceful  boy."  "He  must  be  a  scamp." 

FIRST  GRADES'  TREATMENT  OF  CHARLIE 

Two  hundred  nineteen  out  of  three  hundred  first  grade 
pupils,  or  seventy-three  per  cent,  expressed  the  opinion 
that  the  teacher  should  have  whipped,  licked  or  spanked 
Charlie.  Thirty-one  said,  "Punish  him."  Thirteen, 
"Scold  him."  Seven,  "Shake  him."  Six,  "Send  him 
home."  Five,  "Keep  him  in  at  recess."  Three,  "Send 
him  to  the  principal."  Three,  "Ought  to  have  put  him 
in  the  baby  room."  One  each:  "  Ought  to  do  something." 
"Charlie  ought  to  be  ashamed."  "Ought  to  get  his 
lesson."  "Stand  on  floor."  "Sit  in  a  chair."  "Make 
him  mind."  "Coax  him."  "Talk  to  him."  "Be  kind 
to  him."  "Take  him  down  and  spank  him."  "Whip 
and  send  home  to  his  mother."  "Whip  and  shut  him  in 
a  closet."  "Give  him  an  awful  whipping."  "Suspend 
him.'1  "Expel  him,"  etc.  • 


40  STUDIES   AND   OBSERVATIONS 


WHAT  SECOND  GRADES  THOUGHT  OF  CHARLIE 

Out  of  seven  hundred  twenty-one  second  grade  pupils, 
four  hundred  fifty-one,  or  about  sixty-two  per  cent,  held 
that  " Charlie  was  a  bad  boy."  One  hundred  five,  "A 
naughty  boy."  Twenty-five,  "A  lazy  boy."  Twenty- 
three,  "A  mean  boy."  Eighteen,  "Was  rude."  Seven- 
teen, "Was  cross."  Sixteen,  "Was  not  polite."  Six, 
"Was  impudent."  Six,  "Was  wrong."  Five,  "Was  not 
very  nice."  Four,  "Was  very  angry."  Three,  "Did  not 
want  to  try."  Three,  "Did  not  want  to  learn."  Two, 
"Charlie  was  a  funny  boy."  One  each:  " Charlie  didn't 
try  hard  enough."  "Was  disappointed."  "Was  very  dis- 
obedient." "Was  ill-tempered."  "Was  crazy."  "Not 
a  very  smart  boy."  "  Don't  think  much  of  him."  "Didn't 
like  his  teacher."  "Ought  not  to  have  given  up,  but 
try  again."  "He  wasn't  right."  "He  was  foolish." 
"He  was  unkind." 

SECOND  GRADES'  TREATMENT  OF  CHARLIE 

Four  hundred  fifty-eight  second  grade  pupils,  or  about 
sixty-three  per  cent,  believed  that  Charlie's  teacher  should 
have  whipped,  licked  or  strapped  him.  Forty-two  said, 
"Punish  him,"  without  naming  the  kind  of  punishment. 
Thirty-eight  said,  "Scolded  him."  Thirty-one,  "Ought 
to  have  made  him  try  again."  Nineteen,  "Ought  to 
have  made  him  stay  after  school."  Seventeen,  "Ought 
to  have  sent  him  home."  Fourteen,  "Ought  to  have  sent 
him  to  the  principal."  Five,  "Ought  to  have  shaken 
him  up."  Five,  "Ought  to  have  marked  him  off  on  his 
card."  Five,  "To  have  sent  him  in  a  corner."  Four, 
"To  put  him  in  a  lower  grade."  Four,  "To  have  talked 


IN   THE   SCHOOL-ROOM  41 

to  him."  Three,  "To  have  punished  him  severely  and 
made  him  try  again."  Three,  "Sent  him  into  the  hall." 
Three,  "Expelled  him."  Three,  "Make  him  write,  'I 
must  behave  myself.'"  Three,  "Ought  to  make  hisself 
do  it."  One  each:  "Whip  and  send  to  the  Reform 
School."  "Stand  him  on  the  seat."  "Stand  him  on 
the  teacher's  desk."  "Teacher  should  have  given  him 
an  easy  one."  "Put  soap  and  water  in  his  mouth." 
"Sent  him  home  and  made  him  stay  there  until  he  would 
be  good."  One  boy  extricates  himself  from  answering 
the  troublesome  question  in  true  Yankee  fashion  by 
asking  another:  "What  has  a  boy  a  teacher  for?" 

SOME  INFERENCES 

A  study  of  the  children's  answers  furnishes  some  in- 
teresting suggestions,  most  of  which  cannot  rise  to  the 
dignity  of  generalizations,  but  must  remain  as  mere 
inferences  or  hints.  One  of  the  criticisms  justly  made 
against  child  study  is  that  generalizations  are  too  hastily 
made  and  -from  too  narrow  a  basis.  These  critics,  how- 
ever, may  be  saddled  with  a  share  of  this  responsibility 
for  hasty  generalization,  in  that  they  are  constantly 
demanding,  "Where  are  your  results?" 

It  is  encouraging  to  notice  that  almost  every  pupil 
thought  Charlie's  conduct  was  seriously  at  fault,  and 
deserved  severe  condemnation  and  punishment.  This 
opinion  was  expressed  in  the  most  positive  and  convinc- 
ing manner,  and  warrants  the  generalization  that  chil- 
dren's moral  sense  in  matters  of  school  conduct  is  gener- 
ally sane  and  wholesome.  It  can  and  must  be  counted 
on  in  the  right  management  of  the  school-room.  No 
other  influence  can  contribute  so  much  to  right  disci- 


42  STUDIES   AND    OBSERVATIONS 

pline,  nor,  on  the  other  hand,  tend  to  work  out  such 
disastrous  results.  If  the  moral  sense  of  children  does 
not  reinforce  the  teacher's  discipline,  somebody  or  some- 
thing is  seriously  at  fault.  The  presumption  is  that  the 
teacher  is  at  fault,  and  she  is. wise  to  pause  and  carefully 
investigate  conditions,  whenever  she  finds  herself  with- 
out this  support.  The  successful  teacher  is  highly 
sensitive  to  such  antagonisms  and  seeks  at  once  to 
correct  them, 

In  regard  to  Charlie's  punishment,  it  was  a  matter  of 
much  surprise  that  seventy-three  per  cent  in  first  grade, 
and  sixty-three  per  cent  in  second  grade,  or  sixty-eight  per 
cent  in  all,  favored  corporal  punishment  in  some  form. 
At  first  thought,  the  suggestion  arises,  that  corporal 
punishment  must  have  been  in  high  favor  in  the  system 
of  schools  where  this  investigation  was  made,  but  such 
was  not  the  case.  In  fact,  the  contrary  was  true.  While 
corporal  punishment  was  permitted,  yet  it  was  very 
rarely  resorted  to,  as  the  records  disclosed. 

In  this  connection  it  should  be  recalled  that;  in  passing 
from*  the  first  to  the  second  grade,  there  was  a  decrease 
of  ten  per  cent  among  those  who  favored  corporal  pun- 
ishment. This  decrease  points  towards  the  conclusion 
that  the  home  is  chiefly  responsible  for  the  high  favor 
in  which  corporal  punishment  is  held,  and,  consoling 
thought,  that  the  schools  themselves  are  helping  to 
relegate  the  rigorous  rule  of  the  rod  to  the  realms  of 
reprobation. 

Another  inference  that  might  be  made,  is  that  children, 
as  a  rule,  do  not  object  to  severe  penalties  being  inflicted 
upon  them.  At  least  they  seem  to  be  inclined  to  sit 
in  rather  severe  judgment  upon  each  other's  misconduct. 


IN   THE   SCHOOL-ROOM  43 

A  STUDY  IN  ADJECTIVES 

This  investigation  furnishes  also  an  interesting  study 
of  primary  children's  use  of  adjectives.  The  lack  of 
ability  to  use  discriminatingly  a  variety  of  adjectives, 
was  particularly  noticeable  in  the  first  grade,  where 
ninety-seven  per  cent  of  them  could  only  characterize 
Charlie's  conduct  under  one  of  three  adjectives,  viz.' 
Bad,  naughty,  mean. 

In  the  second  grade,  there  was  marked  increase  in  the 
scope  of  the  adjectives.  Here  an  additional  seventeen 
per  cent  were  able  to  utilize  a  wider  and  better  choice 
of  adjectives. 

The  whole  range  of  adjectives  used  to  characterize 
Charlie's  conduct,  in  first  grade  numbered  only  seven, 
while  the  second  grade  utilized  nineteen  adjectives  in  a 
much  more  discriminating  manner. 

UNIQUE  ANSWERS 

A  few  of  the  more  unique  answers  are  given  in  full. 
A  little  first  grade  girl  said:  "I  thought  Charlie  was  a 
naughty  boy  and  I  thought  the  teacher  was  very  kind  to 
Charlie.  She  ought  to  have  whipped  him  and  scolded 
him  and  maked  him  do  it  anyway." 

Another  first  grade  pupil  wrote:  "Charlie  was  a  bad 
boy  to  say  'I  won't'  to  his  teacher  when  all  the  other 
children  were  doing  number  work.  The  teacher  ought 
to  have  whipped  him  an'd  sent  him  home  to  his  mother, 
and  his  mother  ought  to  have  whipped  him  and  made  him 
go  to  bed  and  stay  all  day,  and  he  would  not  do  it  any 
more  in  school." 

A  second  grade  pupil  stated:  "I  think  he  was  a  very 
bad  boy,  and  I  think  he  ought  to  have  been  slapped.  I 


44  STUDIES   AND   OBSERVATIONS 

never  did  that  in  my  life.  She  ought  to  have  whipped  him, 
I  think.  Don't  you?" 

Another  second  grade  pupil  wrote:  "I  think  Charlie 
was  the  very  baddest  that  he  could  have  been.  I  think 
Charlie's  teacher  ought  to  have  whipped  him  hard.  I 
think  he  will  never  get  to  be  a  Jawyer." 

INDIAN  CHILDREN'S  IDEAS  OF  PUNISHMENT 

.  As  a  contrast  to  white  children's  ideas  of  punishment, 
the  author  took  occasion  to  visit  the  Indian  schools  of 
Winnebago  Agency  and  secured  from  one  of  the  teachers 
there  thirty-five  opinions  of  Indian  children  of  first  and 
second  grades,  but  whose  ages  ranged  from  seven  to 
twelve  years. 

The  following  story  was  related  to  them:  "The  day 
before  Thanksgiving  Day,  Johnnie's  mother  made  some 
nice  pumpkin  pies,  and  set  them  in  a  row  on  the  pantry 
shelf.  Johnnie  wanted  his  mother  to  cut  one  pie  and 
give  him  a  piece.  But  she  said,  'No,  Johnnie,  you  must 
wait  till  to-morrow,  then  you  may  have  all  "you  can  eat.' 
But  Johnnie  thought  he  could  not  wait  so  long,  and  when 
his  mother  went  out  into  the  yard,  he  climbed  upon  a 
chair  and  got  one  of  the  pies.  He  slipped  out  behind 
the  house  and  there  he  ate  the  whole  pie." 

The  Indian  children  were  then  asked  to  write  answers 
to  the  following  question:  What  do  you  think  ought  to 
be  done  with  Johnnie  ? 

The  white  children,  in  the  preceding  investigation,  as 
will  readily  be  recalled,  manifested  but  little  acquaintance 
with  the  wholesome  law  of  consequences,  which  should, 
as  far  as  possible,  underlie  all  punishment.  Nearly  one- 
third  of  the  punishments  suggested  by  the  Indian  children 


IN   THE   SCHOOL-ROOM  45 

were  along  that  line,  such  as:  "Johnnie  ought  not  to  be 
given  any  Thanksgiving  dinner  nor  pie."  "Give  him 
bread  and  water,"  etc. 

Jessie  White  suggested  that  Johnnie's  mother  ought  to 
tie  up  his  hands  until  he  learns  how  to  behave  himself, 
and  Mary  Gray- Wolf  had  still  a  better  scheme  to  bring 
the  offending  hands  to  their  senses,  by  requiring  that 
Johnnie  should  stand  and  hold  the  pumpkin  pie  until 
his  hands  got  tired. 

Whipping  was  advocated  by  only  one-fifth  of  the 
Indian  children,  in  contrast  to  two-thirds  of  the  white 
children  who  favored  corporal  punishment. 

Most  of  the  punishments  they  suggested  as  proper  for 
Johnnie  were  unique,  such  as:  "Clean  woodwork." 
"Saw  wood  all  day."  "Clean  up  the  yard."  "Plow  all 
day."  "Put  into  jail."  "Send  him  to  bed." 

George  Whitebear  wrote:  "I  think  Johnnie  was  a  bad 
boy.  His  mother  ought  to  whip  him,  and  make  him  stand 
on  tip-toes  all  afternoon.  She  ought  not  to  let  him  eat 
his  dinner,  and  whip  him  again  on  Thanksgiving  Day." 

John  Decora  said:  "Johnnie's  mother  ought  to  make 
him  get  into  cold  ice-water,  and  make  him  stay  there  all 
day  and  night  and  have  nothing  at  all  to  eat  on  Thanks- 
giving Day.  Then  he'll  know  how  to  behave  himself 
next  time." 

ILLUSTRATED  STORY 

These  same  Indian  children  were  requested  to  illustrate 
the  story  of  a  bad  boy  who  caught  a  mouse  and  put  it  in 
the  teacher's  desk,  and  also  illustrate  what  happened. 
Two  papers  are  submitted  as  prepared,  one  by  Agnes 
Pelkey  and  the  other  by  George  Field. 


STUDIES   AND    OBSERVATIONS 


IN   THE   SCHOOL-ROOM 


47 


&n> 


CHAPTER   V 

CHARACTERISTICS    OF    THE    BEST    TEACHER 
AS  RECOGNIZED   BY   CHILDREN 

There  have  been  numerous  pedagogical  works  written, 
in  which  the  characteristics  of  the  best,  or  model,  teacher 
have  been  set  forth,  but  usually  from  the  standpoint  of 
some  eminent  educator.  In  describing  that  model  teacher, 
the  eminent  educator  draws  largely  from  his  own  experi- 
ence, and  clothes  his  model  with  his  own  characteristics, 
supplemented,  it  may  be,  by  some  traits  observed  in  other 
successful  teachers,  and  rounded  out  by  a  few  more, 
evolved  from  his  inner  consciousness. 

Without  wishing  to  decry  the  helpfulness  of  such 
descriptions,  it  may  be  well  to  depart  from  this  customary 
view,  and  glean  some  of  the  characteristics  of  the  best 
teacher  from  the  standpoint  of  the  pupil.  While  the 
judgment  of  the  pupil,  no  doubt,  is  immature  and  liable 
to  error,  yet  those  characteristics  which  impress  the  pupils 
favorably,  which  lead  to  a  high  appreciation  on  their  part, 
and  establish  those  relations  of  sympathy  and  co-operation 
so  essential  in  the  school- room,  must  have  some  value. 
In  these  days  of  child  study,  why  should  not  these  char- 
acteristics be  investigated,  and  some  ideas  gained  of  the 
best  teacher  from  the  children's  standpoint  ? 

Believing  that  there  might  be  some  useful  information 
gained  from  such  an  investigation,  probably  only  con- 
firmatory of  the  views  held  by  the  eminent  educators, 
48 


ix  TIII-:  SCHOOL-ROOM  4<; 

but,  in  any  event,  helpful  to  the  teachers  making  the 
investigation,  we  undertook  the  work  after  the  following 
plan : 

PURPOSES  AND  PLANS 

Purpose,  to  learn  something  of  the  children's  ideas  as 
to  what  constitutes  the  most  helpful  teacher,  and  what 
are  the  chief  characteristics  of  the  best  teacher. 

Preliminary  and  first  grade  pupils  were  not  included  in 
this  study. 

Provide  pupils  with  paper  and  pencil,  and  request  each 
to  write  at  top  of  sheet  name  of  school  building,  his  name, 
age  and  grade. 

Place  on  the  blackboard  the  following  questions,  and 
request  pupils  to  express  themselves  clearly  and  fully. 

Recall  all  your  teachers  as  fully  as  you  can,  and  single 
out  the  one  who  helped  you  the  most. 

QUESTIONS 

1.  In  what  way  did  she  help  you? 

2.  Do  you  recall  any  special  word  or  act  of  hers 
which  greatly  helped  you  ?     If  so,  what  is  it  ? 

3.  Will  you  write,  in  a  half  dozen  sentences,  a  de- 
scription of  the  best  teacher  you  have  had,  without  nam- 
ing her? 

Teachers  were  instructed  to  carefully  examine  the 
replies  before  sending  them  to  the  superintendent's  office, 
so  that  they  might  learn  what  characteristics  their  children 
most  appreciated. 

Two  thousand  four  hundred  eleven  papers,  from  second 
to  eighth  grade  inclusive,  were  collated  in  the  superin- 
tendent's office,  and  proved  a  most  interesting  study. 
For  convenience,  a  few  of  the  more  common  replies  as 


STUDIES   AND    OBSERVATIONS 


to  how  pupils  were  helped,  and  in  reference  to  the  best 
teacher's  characteristics,  are  presented  in  tabular  form. 

Tabular  Form 


Grades 

No. 

Helped 
in 
Studies 

Personal 
Appear- 
ance of 
Teacher 

Good  or 
Kind 

Patient 

Polite 

Neat 

Cross 

Second 

404 

All 

59% 

53% 

2% 

2% 

2% 

1% 

Third 

58i 

All 

57% 

52% 

4% 

5% 

8% 

2% 

Fourth 

511 

95% 

68% 

63% 

9% 

5% 

n% 

2% 

Fifth 

347 

85% 

50% 

67% 

16% 

7% 

6% 

3% 

Sixth 

245 

55% 

41% 

55% 

14% 

7% 

4% 

5% 

Seventh 

i57 

40% 

74% 

45% 

14% 

2% 

9% 

2% 

Eighth 

1  66 

39% 

64% 

38% 

22% 

3% 

n% 

o% 

Total 

2,411 

58% 

55% 

9% 

7% 

4% 

2% 

How  HELPED 

In  reply  to  the  question,  "In  what  way  did  she  help 
you?"  all  the  lower  grades  mentioned  some  particular 
study  or  studies,  but  other  and  more  important  matters 
were  mentioned  in  the  higher  grades. 

In  the  lower  grades  such  expressions  as,  "She  helped 
me  to  be  good,"  "to  study,"  "to  like  school,"  "to  be 
polite,"  "not  to  whisper,"  "to  be  kind,"  "not  to  swear, 
chew  nor  smoke,"  were  generally  given,  while  in  the 
higher  grades,  such  replies  as  "to  observe,"  "to  control 
myself,"  "to  cure  myself  of  some  of  my  bad  habits,"  "to 
strengthen  my  character,"  were  characteristic. 

A  careful  study  of  these  replies  suggests  the  thought 


IN   THE   SCHOOL-ROOM  51 

that  pupils  are  generally  more  appreciative  of  the  earnest, 
intelligent  efforts  of  their  teachers  to  train  and  develop 
them,  especially  along  the  line  of  character  building,  than 
is  commonly  supposed,  and  that  this  sense  of  appreciation, 
while  it  is  often  concealed  beneath  a  careless  or  impassive 
exterior,  has  been  aroused  and  will  intensify  as  the  years 
come  and  go. 

IN  WHAT  WAY? 

In  response  to  the  question,  "Do  you  recall  any  special 
word  or  act  of  hers  which  greatly  helped  you?"  the 
lower  grades  made  frequent  references  to  some  word  of 
commendation  or  praise  which  had  been  an  inspiration 
to  them,  such  as:  "She  said  I  was  a  good  writer."  "A 
good  speller."  "Your  work  looks  neat."  "By  telling 
me  I  improved  in  my  lessons,"  etc. 

The  deep  sense  of  appreciation  of  words  of  encourage- 
ment and  commendation  was  not  entirely  confined  to 
lower  grades,  but  manifested  itself  to  a  greater  degree  than 
anticipated  in  higher  grades.  If  the  simple  statement  of 
the  teacher,  "Your  work  looks  neat,"  when  such  state- 
ment harmonized  with  the  facts,  so  greatly  inspired  and 
helped  a  pupil  that  he  remembered  it  several  years  after- 
ward, may  it  not  be  wise  for  teachers  to  be  on  the  look- 
out for  such  occasions  and  utilize  them  more  frequently? 
Teachers,  in  their  constant  watch  for  errors,  imbibe  too 
much  of  the  criticising  spirit,  and  sometimes  fail  to  recog- 
nize that  it  is  also  their  duty  to  commend  excellence,  and 
thus  give  needed  inspiration. 

From  among  the  many  interesting  statements  which 
wore  recalled  as  highly  helpful,  only  a  few  can  be  quoted 
at  random.  This  was  a  favorite  quotation:  "If  at  first 


52  STUDIES   AND    OBSERVATIONS 

you  don't  succeed,  try,  try  again."  "  Honesty  is  the 
best  policy,"  and  "Attention  to  duty  is  the  secret  of 
success,"  were  also  given  as  helpful  in  shaping  their  lives. 

To  lodge  such  energizing  sentiments  in  the  memories 
of  pupils  and  make  them  moulding,  stimulating  forces 
in  their  lives  is  a  rare  privilege,  and  carries  with  it  much 
responsibility. 

The  most  helpful  words  of  the  teacher  which  were 
remembered  and  appreciated,  were  very  frequently  along 
the  line  of  self-help,  as:  "If  you  find  out  for  yourself, 
you  will  not  forget  so  soon."  "I  cannot  help  you  unless 
you  help  yourself."  "Never  say  I  can't,  but  do  the  best 
you  can." 

Numerous  references  were  made  to  statements  in  which 
the  teacher  placed  confidence  in  pupils,  and  they  were 
delighted  to  respond,  as:  "She  sometimes  left  the  room, 
to  see  if  she  could  trust  us,  and  we  were  always  honest, 
and  did  not  do  anything  behind  her  back." 

Here  is  a  splendid  tribute  to  a  genuine  teacher  who 
could  impress  her  noble  spirit  upon  her  pupils.  "When 
you  did  anything  wrong,  she  would  take  you  aside  and 
explain  that  you  had  done  wrong,  and  it  would  make 
anybody  try  to  be  good  when  you  had  a  little  talk  with 
her." 

So  many  pupils  referred  to  the  little  attentions  given 
them,  a  smile,  a  pleasant  word,  tying  a  ribbon,  recog- 
nition on  the  street,  a  visit,  etc.,  that  it  was  clear  that  this 
was  a  royal  way  into  their  affections. 

DUTY  OF  TEACHER  TO  DRESS  WELL 

In  describing  the  "best  teacher,"  it  was  a  matter  of 
surprise  at  first  that  in  every  grade,  except  one,  more 


IN   THE   SCHOOL-ROOM  53 

than  half  of  them  gave  prominence  to  her  dress  and 
personal  appearance.  Had  this  occurred  only  in  the  low- 
est grades,  it  would  readily  be  attributed  to  the  propensity 
of  the  child  to  note  and  judge  only  superficial  qualities; 
but  when  the  highest  grades  gave  dress  and  personal 
appearance  even  greater  prominence,  it  raised  the  ques- 
tion whether  it  was  not,  after  all,  a  highly  important 
factor  in  school  work.  The  children  are  highly  sus- 
ceptible to  such  impressions  of  taste  and  neatness,  and 
that  they  quickly  imitate  and  improve  under  such  in- 
fluences, is  well  known  and  constantly  utilized,  but  is 
the  other  consideration,  that  teachers  should  dress  with 
neatness  and  taste  in  order  to  attract  and  win  their  pupils, 
given  due  weight?  Ought  not  the  teacher  to  consider 
this  matter  of  dress  and  general  personal  appearance  in 
the  light  of  a  professional  duty,  if  from  no  other,  because 
it  gives  her  additional  power  to  cultivate  those  pleasant 
relations  of  sympathy  and  affection  which  are  so  essential 
in  school-room  work  ? 

OTHER  CHARACTERISTICS 

Patience,  aiways  needed  in  training  the  young,  received 
quite  a  high  degree  of  appreciation.  As  one  enthusi- 
astically expressed  it  in  his  own  vigorous  if  somewhat 
inelegant  vernacular:  "She  never  flew  off  the  handle." 
As  would  be  inferred,  this  appreciation  manifested  itself 
least  in  the  lowest  grades,  and  very  rapidly  increased  in 
the  highest  grades. 

Politeness  was  another  trait  frequently  referred  to. 
Many  statements  indicated  how  responsive  pupils  gener- 
ally are  to  courteous  treatment,  and  how  resentful  of 
discourteous  treatment.  A  girl  manifested  her  appreci- 


54  STUDIES   AND    OBSERVATIONS 

ation  by  saying:  "Her  actions  helped  me  to  do  better." 
Neatness  was  another  trait  many  recalled.  Not  only 
was  the  dress  of  the  teacher  referred  to,  but  also  her 
desk.  Teachers  need  to  remember  that  dress,  desk, 
blackboards,  the  entire  room,  all  are  making  lasting  im- 
pressions, and  must  not  be  ignored. 

It  was  a  little  amusing  to  find  that  a  few  pupils  com- 
mended crossness.  That  this  may  not  be  a  little  crumb 
of  comfort  to  that  rapidly  disappearing  class  of  teachers 
whose  chief  reliance  is  in  scolding,  it  must  be  stated  that 
in  nearly  every  one  of  these  cases  there  was  internal 
evidence  that  the  pupil  thought  a  tongue-lashing  was 
doing  penance  for  misconduct,  and  in  no  sense  regener- 
ative. 

On  the  other  hand,  the  numerous  references  to  the 
pleasant,  mild,  good-natured,  not  cross,  not  cranky, 
happy,  lovely,  agreeable,  friendly,  loving,  patient, -cheer- 
ful, smiling,  sweet-tempered,  full  of  fun,  merry,  not 
snappy,  gentle,  always  in  good  humor,  amiable,  jolly 
teacher,  would  convince  the  most  skeptical  scold  that 
scolding  is  neither  a  regenerative  process,  nor  a  pass- 
port into  the  affections  and  good-will  of  a  pupil, 

A  TEACHER'S  MIRROR 

There  is  an  erroneous  idea  that  sometimes  creeps  into 
the  thought  of  a  certain  class  of  teachers  who  are  not 
close  observers,  that  children  are  easily  misled.  They 
flatter  themselves  that  they  can  easily  conceal  from  the 
children  their  lack  of  sincerity,  their  lack  of  genuine 
interest,  their  lack  of  thorough  preparation,  their  lack  of 
self-control,  their  failures  or  shortcomings  of  whatever 
kind.  Such  teachers  need  to  disillusionize  themselves, 


IN   THE   SCHOOL-ROOM  55 

and  as  a  means  to  that  end,  they  only  need  to  study  the 
following  characteristic  statements  of  the  children  made 
in  describing  the  "best  teacher."  They  cannot  fail  to 
see  that  the  children  cannot  be  hoodwinked.  They  are 
exceedingly  keen  in  their  analysis  of  the  teacher's  motives 
and  shortcomings. 

These  characteristic  statements  of  the  children  can  be 
used  profitably  as  a  mirror  by  all  classes  of  teachers,  and 
arc  presented  for  that  purpose. 

"She  could  stand  some  fun." 

The  hearty  laugh  with  the  children  in  the  school-room 
when  something  amusing  comes  up  in  a  legitimate  way, 
is  a  wholesome  tonic  and  to  be  taken  freely.  The  be- 
ginning of  many  an  antagonism  has  thus  been  swept 
away  by  the  wave  of  innocent  laughter,  which  submerged 
in  it  pupils  and  teacher  alike.  The  dignity  which  fears 
being  compromised  under  such  circumstances  needs 
shocking,  if  not  shattering.  It  certainly  needs  recon- 
structing." 

"The  children  feel  as  if  she  was  one  of  them." 

Here  is  evidence  of  that  companionable  feeling  between 
teachers  and  pupils,  which  so  deeply  impressed  the  mem- 
bers of  the  Mosely  Commission  in  their  recent  investiga- 
tions of  our  educational  institutions,  and  which  is  one  of 
the  crowning  merits  of  our  educational  work.  To  estab- 
lish such  relations  of  common  interest  and  sympathy 
between  teachers  and  pupils  is  to  open  the  way  for  effec- 
tive teaching  and  the  right  building  of  character. 

"She  always  got  our  attention." 

That  even  the  children  recognize  the  ability  to  secure 
their  attention,  as  one  of  the  characteristics  of  the  best 
teacher  is  a  little  surprising,  particularly  when  it  is  re- 


56  STUDIES  AND   OBSERVATIONS 

called  that  some  teachers  have  failed  to  reach  the  same 
conclusion,  or  lack  the  ability  to  secure  attention.  In- 
attention renders  futile  the  most  skillful  efforts  in  instruc- 
tion. Failure  to  secure  attention  is  responsible  for  the 
greatest  waste  in  the  school-room. 

"The  principal  reason  I  liked  her  for  was  because  she 
liked  me  and  showed  it  once  in  a  while." 

The  cold,  unsympathetic  teacher  fails  to  arouse  the 
best  in  the  child.  If  the  emotional  life  be  stirred  by  such 
a  teacher,  it  rather  takes  on  the  form  of  antagonism 
towards  the  one  who  fails  to  manifest  those  sympathetic, 
companionable  qualities  which  the  child  has  a  right  to 
expect.  In  the  mind  and  heart  of  the  child  there  is  the 
feeling  that  the  teacher  is  in  the  place  of  the  parent,  and 
in  loco  parentis  is  not  to  them  a  cold  legal  phrase. 

"She  was  interested  in  her  pupils'  habits  and  readings." 

"She  took  a  great  deal  of  interest  in  us." 

Here  again  is  shown  their  appreciation  of  the  warm 
personal  side  of  the  teacher.  The  teacher  is  expected 
to  be  interested  in  the  progress  of  her  pupils  in  the  sub- 
jects of  the  course  of  study.  That  is  in  line  with  her 
work,  her  prescribed  or  official  duties.  But  when  she 
manifests  a  deep,  personal  interest  in  her  pupils'  habits, 
their  home  reading,  and  enters  into  their  lives  outside  of 
school,  they  are  convinced  that  such  an  interest  rises 
above  the  official  into  the  personal,  and  gathers  its  in- 
spiration from  what  they  are  and  do. 

"She  don't  feel  satisfied  when  her  pupils  don't  have  a 
good  lesson." 

"If  you  did  not  get  your  lessons,  she  was  so  sorry  that 
it  made  you  ashamed." 

One  of  the  characteristics  of  the  best   teacher  that 


IN  THE  SCHOOL-ROOM  57 

impressed  itself  on  the  minds  of  the  pupils,  was  the 
strong  desire  that  manifested  itself  that  lessons  should 
be  thoroughly  learned.  Such  thoroughness  was  to  be 
attained,  not  so  much  by  rigid  discipline  and  enforced 
study,  as  through  personal  appeals  to  their  higher  nature, 
in  order  to  secure  that  voluntary  effort  which  is  much 
richer  in  its  educative  results  than  enforced  effort. 

"She  had  no  pets." 

The  judicial  attitude  in  the  school-room  is  not  incon- 
sistent with  the  sympathetic  attitude,  whatever  may  be 
said  of  them  elsewhere.  .A  teacher  can  be  companion- 
able with  all  her  pupils  and  still  avoid  having  pets.  Here 
is  the  best  teacher  without  any  pets.  She  has  so  wisely 
and  fairly  treated  her  pupils,  without  sacrificing  her 
kindly  spirit,  that  she  is  remembered  as  the  best  teacher. 

"She  always  thought  before  she  spoke." 

"She  always  meant  what  she  said." 

Inconsiderate  speech  in  the  school-room  is  one  of  the 
most  fruitful  causes  of  antagonisms  and  difficulties. 
The  teacher  who  is  guilty  of  thoughtlessness  or  rashness 
in  speech,  is  constantly  arousing  unnecessary  antagonism 
between  herself  and  her  pupils,  as  well  as  her  patrons. 
Superintendents  are  more  frequently  called  upon  to  ad- 
just difficulties  between  such  teachers  and  their  pupils 
or  patrons,  than  from  all  other  causes  combined.  Re- 
gard yourself  as  highly  commended  if  your  pupils  say 
of  you,  "She  always  thought  before  she  spoke."  "She 
always  meant  what  she  said." 

"Her  actions  helped  me  to  do  better." 

This  cannot  be  better  illustrated  than  by  the  relation 
of  the  following  incident : 

Charlie's  mother  had  noticed  that  in  a  few  short  months, 


58  STUDIES   AND    OBSERVATIONS 

under  the  influence  of  his  teacher,  Miss  Jones,  he  had 
become  quite  considerate  of  his  conduct  and  his  treat- 
ment of  others.  He  delighted  in  those  kindly  little  at- 
tentions towards  others  which  cost  little  and  yet  mean 
so  much.  She  asked  him  if  Miss  Jones  had  talked  with 
him  about  politeness.  He  said  very  promptly  and  posi- 
tively, "No,  mamma." 

"Well,  why  is  it  then  that  you  are  so  much  more  polite 
than  you  used  to  be?" 

"Why,"  Charlie  replied,  "Miss  Jones  doesn't  say  any- 
thing to  us  about  being  polite,  but  when  we  are  in  her 
room,  we  just  can't  help  feeling  and  being  polite." 

Fortunate  pupils  to  have  such  an  atmosphere  of  service 
emanating  from  the  teacher  and  stimulating  all  to  deeds 
of  kindness  and  courtesy.  Parents  feel  the  greatest  debt 
of  gratitude  toward  the  teacher  who  can  regenerate  the 
Charlies  after  the  manner  of  Miss  Jones. 

"She  made  things  pleasant,  so  I  felt  like  working." 

"Her  manner  seemed  to  give  me  inspiration  to  work." 

Here  again  is  shown  the  sensitiveness  of  the  children 
to  the  atmosphere  of  the  room,  how  deeply  they  appreci- 
ate it  and  how  ready  they  are  to  respond  to  it.  When 
we  recall  that  it  is  self-activity  alone  that  induces  growth, 
that  educates,  it  makes  clear  that  an  inspiring,  working 
atmosphere  in  the  school-room  is  a  matter  of  supreme 
importance. 

"She  put  us  on  our  honor." 

It  is  encouraging  to  note  that  the  very  attitude  of 
trust  on  the  part  of  the  teacher,  the  attitude  that  ought 
to  prove  most  stimulating  and  helpful  to  the  pupils  them- 
selves, is  regarded  by  them  as  one  of  the  characteristics 
that  go  to  make  up  the  best  teacher, 


IN    THK    SCHOOL-ROOM  59 

"She  never  flew  off  the  handle." 

Inconsiderate,  hasty  action  is  even  worse  than  in- 
considerate, hasty  speech,  because  "Actions  speak  louder 
than  words."  The  consequences  of  hasty  action  are 
more  disastrous.  Hasty  punishment  is  usually  accom- 
panied by  an  irritated  condition  of  mind,  which  gives  to 
the  punishment  an  appearance  of  gratifying  personal 
vengeance.  The  characteristic  of  -the  besi  teacher  thus 
negatively  described  in  "She  never  flew  off  the  handle," 
might  be  set  forth  as  level-headed,  well-poised  or  self- 
controlled.  Here  also  the  children  have  indicated  a 
very  important  characteristic  of  the  best  teacher. 

"She  never  punished  the  children  because  she  didn't 
feel  good." 

They  evidently  thought  they  had  suffered  unjustly  on 
account  of  the  poor  health  of  some  teacher.  Such  in- 
justice has  been  at  times  committed,  but  how  did  they 
find  it  out? 

"She  did  not  scold  us  one  time  and  then  be  awful  good 
for  a  while." 

And  yet  the  teacher,  who  thought  to  even  up  in  the 
above  manner,  didn't  dream  that  her  pupils  were  reading 
her  motives  as  easily  as  they  would  read  a  book. 

The  following  is  a  typical  description  of  the  best  teacher, 
in  the  prescribed  half  dozen  sentences,  given  by  a  sixth 
grade  pupil: 

"I  had  a  lovely  teacher.  She  was  kind,  thoughtful 
and  gentle,  and  helped  you  whenever  she  thought  you 
needed  it,  if  you  asked  her  politely.  She  had  a  large 
heart,  although  she  was  small,  and  a  good  deal  larger 
heart  than  some  people  twice  her  size." 

Another  sixth  grade  pupil  wrote: 


60  STUDIES   AND   OBSERVATIONS 

"She  always  tried  to  make  the  room  look  neat,  and 
tried  to  make  it  as  pleasant  as  possible.  When  I  first 
started,  I  could  not  bear  language,  and  now  I  think  it 
is  one  of  the  best  studies.  She  was  very  reasonable.  I 
always  hated  to  go  to  school,  but  when  I  came  in  that 
room  I  was  not  out  one  day  in  the  whole  year.  Every 
pupil  in  the  room  knew  by  her  actions  what  she  wanted 
us  to  do." 

This  raises  a  very  serious  question  as  to  the  teacher's 
responsibility,  in  arousing  or  fostering  strong  dislikes  in 
pupils  against  school  studies,  and  even  against  the  entire 
school.  How  far  are  teachers  responsible  for  those  fre- 
quent dislikes  of  pupils  to  certain  studies,  which  stand 
as  a  barrier  to  thorough  work  and  finally  result  in  driving 
them  out  of  school  ?  Is  it  not  evident  that  teachers  must 
share  some  of  the  responsibility  for  truancy? 

The  following  description  is  from  an  eighth  grade 
pupil : 

"The  best  teacher  I  ever  had  was  kind  and  gentle, 
and  had  a  beautiful  character,  but  was  not  at  all  'soft.' 
She  could  change  her  disposition  at  a  moment's  notice, 
if  circumstances  required  it.  But  not  quite  strict  enough. 
She  acted  on  her  pupils'  honor,  and  therefore  procured 
better  results  than,  I  think,  if  she  had  kept  her  eye  on  them 
all  the  time.  And  one  good  thing  about  her  was  that 
she  did  not  make  any  'foolish,'  'silly'  rules  that  were 
unnecessary,  but  the  ones  she  made  the  children  most 
always  lived  up  to." 

The  teacher  who  cannot  find  some  helpful  hints  in 
the  naive  statements  of  the  children  quoted  above,  is 
open  to  the  suspicion  that  she  either  lacks  in  alertness,  or 
is  a  hopeless  paragon  of  perfection. 


CHAPTER   VI  ^ 

MONEY  SENSE   IN   CHILDREN 

The  Mothers'  Child  Study  Club  of  Sioux  City  re- 
quested the  writer  to  prepare  a  paper  for  that  body  on 
"Money  Sense  in  Children."  Believing  that  a  helpful 
method  of  securing  such  information  would  be  to  let  the 
children  speak  for  themselves,  rather  than  to  theorize 
about  it,  the  following  suggestions  and  questions  were 
prepared. 

All  grade  teachers  from  third  grade  to  high  school 
are  requested  to  place  on  their  blackboards,  without 
comment,  the  following  questions  as  a  language  exercise. 
Each  pupil  is  requested  to  write  his  name,  building, 
age  and  grade  at  top  of  paper.  Papers  are  to  be  collected 
as  soon  as  written,  examined  by  the  teacher  as  a  language 
lesson,  and  later  sent  to  the  superintendent's  office. 

1.  What  is  money. 

2.  Do  you  want  to  earn  money?    Why? 

3.  How  old  were  you  when  you  first  wanted  money? 

4.  Do  your  parents  each  week  or  month  give  you  money 
to  use  ? 

5.  If  you  had  five  dollars,  what  would  you  do  with 
them? 

Replies  were  received  from  two  thousand  seven  hundred 
six  pupils,  ranging  in  grades  from  third  to  high  school. 
The  average  age  of  pupils  in  third  grade  is  about  nine, 
while  those  of  eighth  grade  is  about  fourteen.  The  fol- 

61 


STUDIES    AND    OBSERVATIONS 


lowing  is  a  tabular  view  of  the  replies  received  in  response 
to  the  question: 

WHAT  is  MONEY? 


B 
G 
T 
B 
G 
T 
B 
G 
T 
B 
G 
T 
B 
G 
T 
B 
G 
T 
B 
G 
T 
B 
G 
T 

Eic 

N'O. 

28 

,a 

1  80 

jhth 

26.9 
25.0 
25-8 
71.1 
73-6 
72.6 

Seventh 

Sixth 

Fifth 

Fourth 

Third 

Total 

NO. 

39-9 
28.4 
33-7 
58.0 
70.4 
64-8 

NO. 

88 
04 
182 
in 

IOQ 
230 

2 

43-1 
44-5 
43-9 
54-4 

51-7 

.0 

NO. 

137 

28.} 
96 
107 
203 

I 

% 

NO. 

217 

221 
438 
49 
68 
117 
5 

76.4 
74.0 
75-1 
17-3 
22.7 

20.1 

1.8 

NO. 

72.2 
68.3 
70.2 
23-6 
27-9 

.0 

.2 
.0 

NO. 

% 

Coin,  silver,  gold, 
currency,  etc. 
A  medium  of  ex- 
change, Standard 
of  value,  etc. 

No  answer 

Useful,  valuable, 
precious 

Wealth,  material 
Round 
Root  of  all  evil 
Total 

3 

104 
80 
119 
199 

57-0 
56.3 
56-8 
40.2 
41.0 
40.6 
-5 

242 
217 
459 
79 
89 
1  68 
6 
3 
0 

6 
7 
13 

767 
763 
1530 
489 
598 
IOS7 

18 
16 
34 
19 
16 

3I 

5 
13 

3 
1304 
1402 
2706 

58.8 
54-4 
56-5 
37-5 
42-5 
40.2 
•  3 
.1 
-3 
•5 

.2 

:l 

•9 

•S 

.2 
.1 
.1 
.1 
.1 
.1 

2 

4 

1-4 
1.6 

3 

.6 
•9 

5 

2 

4 
6 

i 

.2 

.O 

-9 

-4 
5 

3 
4 

2 

6 

.6 

1.8 
.8 

1.2 

10 

7 

2 

I 

1  •  7 

!6 
1.6 

i 
i 

.6 

-3 

i 

.2 

4 

.8 

8 

2 

2 

4 

.6 
.6 

.6 

j 

.  7 

5 

i 
138 
169 
307 

-3 

i 

204 

211 
415 

.2 

239 
261 

500 

•••"• 

i 

284 
299 

553 

.  2 

104 
144 

335 
653 

It  is  not  anticipated  that  the  lower  grade  children 
could  give  an  adequate  answer  to  the  question,  "What  is 
money?"  It  was  believed,  however,  that  such  crude 
answers  as  they  could  give  would  be  interesting  and  also 
suggestive  as  to  the  vagueness  of  children's  ideas,  even 
in  the  realm  of  what,  in  the  adult  mind,  is  familiar. 

Their  answers  do  not  indicate  as  much  vagueness 
among  the  lower  grades  as  was  anticipated.  It  can  be 
assumed  that  the  average  boy  and  girl  of  Sioux  City  is 
fairly  well  acquainted  with  the  term  money,  as  over 
ninety-six  per  cent  of  them  define  the  term  intelligently. 
The  lower  grades  naturally  gave  prominence  to  the  more 
superficial  definition  that  money  is  coin,  currency,  etc., 


IN  THE    SCHOOL-ROOM  63 

while  the  older  and  more  thoughtful  pupils  consider  the 
purposes  or  uses  of  money,  and  prefer  to  define  money 
as  the  medium  of  exchange,  the  standard  of  value,  etc. 
Here,  in  the  first  definition,  is  illustrated  the  lowest  stage 
of  thinking,  that  which  is  nearest  allied  to  sense  per- 
ception; coin  and  currency  are  readily  seen  and  felt, 
while  in  the  second  definition  the  second  stage  of  think- 
ing is  manifested,  that  which  regards  and  seeks  out 
relations,  purposes,  rather  than  sense  perceptions,  as  in 
the  "medium  of  exchange.' 

The  remaining  answers,  since  they  represent  such  a 
slight  per  cent  of  the  whole,  have  no  particular  signifi- 
cance, and  are  only  interesting  because  peculiar.  A  few 
of  the  third  grade  pupils,  instead  of  naming  coins,  give 
only  one  prominent  quality  of  a  coin,  and  define  money 
as  something  round.  A  few  pupils  evidently  borrow 
their  ideas  of  money  from  a  faulty  recollection  of  an 
old  saying,  and  make  money,  instead  of  the  love  of  money, 
"the  root  of  all  evil." 

Do  You  WANT  TO  EARN  MONEY? 

In  reply  to  the  second  question,  "Do  you  want  to  earn 
money?"  only  sixty-four  out  of  two  thousand  seven 
hundred  six,  or  an  average  of  about  two  and  one-half 
per  cent,  answer  in  the  negative.  The  girls,  as  would 
be  anticipated  from  their  surroundings  and  training, 
do  not  manifest  this  desire  quite  as  strongly  as  the  boys, 
although  only  falling  behind  the  boys  about  one  per  cent. 
When  nearly  ninety-eight  per  cent  of  both  boys  and 
girls  in  our  public  schools  want  to  earn  money,  there 
is  not  much  danger  that  the  commercial  instinct  will  soon 
die  out.  Some  questions  might  be  raised,  on  the  other 


64  STUDIES   AND    OBSERVATIONS 

hand,  whether  as  a  people,  we  are  not  too  much  domi- 
nated by  the  commercial  spirit.  While  we  resent  the 
inelegant  yet  forcible  statement  of  John  Stuart  Mill, 
concerning  the  dominance  of  this  commercial  spirit 
among  us,  when  he  says,  "In  America  the  life  of  the 
whole  of  our  sex  is  devoted  to  dollar  hunting,  and  of  the 
other  sex  to  raising  dollar  hunters,"  yet  candor  compels 
us  reluctantly  to  admit  that  our  conduct  gives,  at  times, 
evidence  that  we  are  too  much  dominated  by  the  mer- 
cenary spirit. 

Every  close  student  of  our  schools  cannot  fail  to  have 
discovered  that  a  large  number  of  pupils,  attracted  or 
led  by  this  universal  desire  to  earn  money,  leave  the 
schools  at  an  early  age,  long  before  they  have  secured  a 
fair  education.  The  schools  are  often  severely  criticised 
as  lacking  in  proper  management,  because  they  fail  to 
hold  their  pupils,  particularly  in  cases  where  there  is 
no  necessity  for  such  pupils  to  earn  money.  It  is  said 
the  schools  are  not  made  attractive  or  helpful  enough, 
or  there  are  too  few  men  engaged  in  the  work  of  teaching 
to  keep  the  boys  in  school.  There  may  be  some  ground 
for  criticism  here,  but  it  should  not  be  forgotten  that 
everywhere  outside  of  school  the  commercial  spirit  is 
constantly  being  developed  and  vigorously  fostered,  and 
in  that  lies  the  chief  reason  for  this  desertion  of  school 
for  shop  and  store. 

But  little  stress  should  be  placed  upon  this  large  per  cent 
who  wish  to  earn  money.  It  does  not  necessarily  indicate 
any  deep  settled  desire  to  earn  money  to  answer  "  Yes"  to 
the  simple  question,  "Do  you  want  to  earn  money?" 

The  reasons  assigned  for  wishing  to  earn  money  are 
somewhat  varied,  but  they  are  all  classed  as  follows: 


IN   THE   SCHOOL-ROOM 


WHY  Do  You  WISH  TO  EARN  MONEY? 


Eighth 

Seventh 

Sixth 

Fifth 

Fourth 

Third 

Total 

NO. 

% 

NO. 

% 

NO. 

% 

NO. 

% 

NO. 

% 

NO. 

% 

NO. 

% 

(B 

48 

45-9 

46 

S3  -3 

76 

37-2 

40 

20.  S 

117 

4i-3 

»S 

7-4 

361 

27-7 

To  be  independent 

G 

So 

55-5 

55 

32.6 

100 

Si-  6 

S3 

20.3 

1  1  - 

39-1 

22 

6.Q 

436 

31-1 

(  1 

128 

Si.  6 

101 

33-0 

185 

44-5 

102 

20.4 

»34 

40.4 

47 

7-2 

797 

29-5 

To  spend  in  useful 

(b 

5 

4-9 

18 

13-0 

22 

10.8 

77 

32.2 

43 

IS-  2 

i  3« 

38.8 

295 

22.6 

wiivs,   To    help 

G 

0 

6-3 

20 

15-4 

42 

20.  0 

77 

29-5 

6  1 

20.5 

I  W 

4^-8 

354 

2S-2 

the  poor,  etc. 

(T 

14 

5-6 

44 

14-3 

64 

iS-4 

154 

30.8 

104 

17.8 

200 

41  .  i 

649 

24-0 

(B 

20 

19.2 

41 

20.8 

so 

27.4 

44 

l8.4 

00 

21.  I 

50 

17-6 

280 

21-5 

To  spend 

G 

13 

9-0 

21 

12.4 

"*! 

14-7 

57 

21.8 

62 

20.7 

6s 

20.4 

249 

17-8 

(  1' 

33 

13-3 

02 

20.2 

87 

21.  0 

101 

2O.  2 

122 

2O.9 

124 

19.0 

529 

JQ.6 

IB 

7 

6.7 

14 

10.2 

6 

3-0 

15 

6.S 

24 

8.s 

50 

16.7 

122 

9-4 

No  answer 

G 

JO 

13-0 

22 

13-0 

4 

-9 

10 

7-3 

16 

5-3 

48 

IS-I 

129 

9-2 

(  1 

27 

II.  0 

|6 

11.7 

10 

-3 

>4 

6.8 

40 

6.8 

104 

15-9 

251 

Q.I 

(B 

0 

8.6 

8 

5-8 

2S 

I     .2 

17 

7-i 

H 

4-5 

4-5 

8? 

6-7 

To  save 

G 

7 

4-8 

15 

8.Q 

7 

-3 

24 

9-2 

IS 

S.o 

X 

2.6 

76 

5-4 

(T 

1  6 

6-5 

»3 

7-5 

3* 

-7 

4' 

8.2 

28 

4-6 

•3 

3-5 

163 

6.1 

To  spend  on 
luxuries 

B 
G 
T 

4 
3 

7 

4.0 

2.1 

2.8 

6 
13 

10 

4-3 

1:1 

9 
I 
II 

-4 
•9 
.6 

16 
3 

10 

6-5 

1.2 

3-8 

ii 

10 
21 

3-8 
3-3 
3-5 

y- 
16 
43 

5-0 
6.6 

73 
47 

120 

5-6 
3-4 
4-4 

H 

; 

2-9 

•> 

i-5 

s 

.0 

TT 

•1  6 

6 

2.1 

7 

2.  I 

34 

7    6 

To  help  parents 

G 

I 

.7 

6 

3-5 

S 

-4 

l,S 

6.0 

13 

4-4 

7 

2.2 

50 

3.6 

T 

4 

1.6 

8 

2-7 

10 

•5 

29 

5-8 

19 

3-3 

'4 

2.1 

84 

3-i 

B 

3 

2.Q 

I 

-7 

I 

-5 

6 

•  5 

5 

i-7 

IS 

4-5 

3i 

2-4 

To  be  rich 

G 

H 

T 

I 

1.2 

i 

.3 

4 

.0 

TO 

.0 

7 

1.2 

.>; 

3-4 

48 

1.8 

To  get  an  edu- 

<  15 

2 

2 

o 

8 

cation 

G 

s 

5-6 

9 

5-3 

4 

-9 

6 

.3 

2 

-7 

29 

2-0 

1 

10 

4-o 

9 

3-o 

0 

-5 

9 

.8 

s 

-9 

i 

.2 

40 

1-5 

Get  it  without 

ti 

3 

3-0 

2 

1-4 

2 

.0 

I 

.5 

1 

.8 

10 

-7 

earning  it 

? 

S 

2.1 
2-4 

2 

4 

1.2 
1.2 

4 
6 

•9 

•  5 

I 

••;• 

I 
1, 

•  3 
.6 

5 

S 

i-5 

I.O 

15 
25 

i-i 
-9 

iB 

104 



I.vS 



204 

230 

2*4 

33S 

1304 

Total 

G 

144 

,00 

21  I 

26l 

200 

)i8 

.... 

1402 

.... 

IT 

•48 



.so; 

4IS 



500 

— 

$83 



653 

2706 

Nearly  one-third  of  the  pupils  want  to  earn  money  so 
that  they  may  be  independent.  As  was  anticipated, 
this  desire  to  be  independent  manifests  itself  least  in  the 
lower  grades,  where  about  seven  per  cent  desire  it,  while 
in  the  higher  grades  over  fifty  per  cent  are  influenced 
by  it.  These  answers  disclose  that  it  is  not  generally 
a  desire  to  be  free  from  parental  control  that  impels 
them  to  seek  this  independence,  but  rather  to  escape  a 
condition  of  dependence  upon  parents  or  others,  and 
early  reach  the  self-supporting  stage.  Such  answers  as 
the  following  are  characteristic:  "I  will  not  always  have 


66  STUDIES   AND    OBSERVATIONS 

my  parents  to  help  me.  I  will  have  to  help  them  some 
time."  "I  would  like  to  earn  money,  so  as  to  some  day 
go  into  business  for  myself."  "I  may  have  to  earn  money 
some  day,  then  I  will  know  how."  "I  like  to  buy  things 
with  my  own  money."  "So  I  could  say  I  earned  it 
myself." 

About  one- fourth  of  the  entire  number  want  to  earn 
money  in  order  that  it  may  be  spent  in  such  useful  ways 
as  buying  food,  clothing,  necessities  of  life,  doing  good 
to  others,  helping  the  poor,  etc.  To  this  large  class, 
whose  motives  for  earning  money  are  highly  commend- 
able, should  be  added  those  who  wish  to  earn  in  order 
to  help  their  parents,  those  who  wish  to  get  an  education, 
and  those  who  simply  say  they  want  to  save.  Under, 
therefore,  the  two  heads,  to  spend  in  useful  ways  and  to 
save,  another  third  of  the  entire  number  are  classed. 

The  one-fifth  that  desire  money  in  order  to  spend  it, 
do  not  reveal  whether  it  is  desired  to  spend  for  useful 
or  useless  purposes,  and  we  cannot  therefore  assign  these 
to  the  class  having  worthy  or  unworthy  motives.  These, 
with  those  who  give  no  answer,  must  be  classed  under 
unclassified  motives. 

There  is  left,  then,  about  one-fourteenth  of  the  entire 
number,  whose  motives  for  earning  money  are  crudely 
classed  as  unworthy,  such  as  "to  spend  in  luxuries,"  "to 
be  rich,"  etc. 

An  approximate  classification,  therefore,  is  as  follows: 

Worthy  motives  for  earning  money  —  "to  be  indepen- 
dent," "to  spend  in  useful  ways,"  "to  save,"  etc.  64.2 
per  cent. 

Undefined  motives  for  earning  money  —  "to  spend," 
"no  answer."  28.7  per  cent. 


IN   THE   SCHOOL-ROOM  67 

Unworthy  motives  for  earning  money  —  "to  spend  in 
luxuries,"  "to  be  rich,"  etc.  7.1  per  cent. 

Recognizing  with  what  deep  solicitation  parents  are 
on  the  watch  for  evidences  from  their  children  that  they 
are  appreciative  of  parental  care,  and  stand  ready,  should 
opportunity  offer,  or  occasion  require,  to  requite  them 
for  their  many  sacrifices,  it  was  deemed  desirable  to 
separate  from  the  general  class,  "to  spend  in  useful  ways," 
those  who  seek  "to  help  parents."  About  three  per  cent 
of  them  have  this  thought  uppermost  in  their  minds. 
It  is  not  fair  to  assume,  however,  that  our  children  are 
therefore  devoid  of  piety  or  filial  affection.  The  numer- 
ous instances  of  filial  devotion  prove  the  contrary.  Rather 
let  the  failure  to  single  out  this  reason  for  earning  money 
be  attributed  to  the  fact  that,  to  the  average  child,  father 
and  mother's  strength  and  self-reliance  have  been  so 
often  demonstrated  that  the  thought  of  their  dependence 
does  not  suggest  itself. 

It  will  not  escape  the  sharp  eyes  of  the  fair  sex  that 
in  nearly  every  class,  under  what  may  be  termed  worthy 
motives  for  earning  money,  the  girls  lead  the  boys,  and 
in  the  aggregate,  under  worthy  motives,  they  lead  by 
almost  six  per  cent.  This  only  confirms  what  is  gener- 
ally conceded,  that  the  fair  sex,  even  in  youth,  has  a 
keener  sense  of  moral  obligation  and  is  actuated  by  nobler 
motives. 

The  following  answers  are  given  in  full,  not  because 
they  are  typical,  but  because  they  are  unusual,  and  be- 
tray individual  traits  of  character:  "I  like  to  carry  it  in 
my  pocket."  May  this  be  called  the  miser  instinct? 
"I'd  rather  earn  money  than  run  around,"  For  a  fourth 
grade  pupil  this  sets  forth  too  serious  a  view  of  life. 


68  STUDIES    AND    OBSERVATIONS 

"When  we  die,  if  we  have  money  put  away,  we  will  not 
have  to  depend  on  some  one  else  to  buy  our  coffin  and 
ground  to  be  buried  in."  This  from  a  fifth  grade  girl, 
indicates  seriousness  verging  on  morbidness.  An  eighth 
grade  girl  naively  says:  "I  want  to  earn  money,  if  I 
don't  have  to  work  too  hard  for  it."  Like  many  others, 
she  is  after  what  an  eighth  grade  boy  would  call  a  "soft 
job."  Another  eighth  grade  girl,  who  arouses  the  sus- 
picion that  she  regards  herself  as  of  superior  clay,  de- 
clares: "If  it  were  necessary,  I  should  like  to  earn  money, 
but  sucn  as  I  am,  I  care  nothing  whatever  for  money." 
An  eighth  grade  boy  holds  the  rather  doubtful  view, 
"The  more  money  I  have,  the  more  pleasure  I  have." 
Another,  "I  want  to  be  rich,  so  I  won't  be  a  common 
laborer."  He  may  find  out  later  that  even  the  lot  of  a 
common  laborer  is  to  be  preferred  to  that  of  some  rich 
men.  A  seventh  grade  girl  boldly  declares  that  she 
wants  to  earn  money  because  "It  is  the  chief  thing  for 
which  people  live."  Unfortunately,  the  conduct  of  a 
large  portion  of  the  human  race  seems  to  justify  her 
conclusion. 

The  following  is  a  tabulated  statement  of  the  answers 
to  the  question: 


IN  THE   SCHOOL-ROOM 


How  OLD  WERE  You  WHEN  You  FIRST  WANTED  MONEY 


Eighth 

Seventh 

Sixth 

Fifth 

Fourth 

Third 

Total 

NO. 

% 

NO. 

% 

NO. 

% 

NO 

% 

NO.  j    % 

MO 

% 

NO. 

% 

In  third  or  fourth 

(B 

13 

12.4 

50 

36.3 

75 

36-8 

8< 

37-2 

I  12 

39-4 

I  11 

33-2 

450 

34-5 

year 

JG 

27 

I8.7 

40 

27.2 

00 

28.4 

os 

26.0 

8  1 

27.1 

90 

30.2 

3/8 

27.0 

IT 

40 

16.2 

06 

3i-3 

135 

32-5 

I.S7 

3i-4 

1  93 

33-o 

207 

31-7 

828 

30.6 

In  fifth  or  sixth 

(B 

26 

25-0 

18 

13  -i 

37 

18.1 

57 

23-7 

77 

27-1 

I  15 

34-3 

330 

25-3 

year 

Is 

22 

15-3 

31 

18.3 

4S 

22.7 

69 

26.4 

90 

33-1 

I2( 

39-6 

395 

28.2 

IT 

4S 

19-3 

49 

15-8 

Is 

20.5 

120 

25-2 

i7< 

30.2 

241 

36-9 

725 

26.8 

Two  vcars  and 

(B 

9 

8.7 

24 

17.4 

20 

II.  2 

36 

15-0 

55 

19.4 

& 

16.6 

209 

16.0 

less 

G 

12 

8-3 

»S 

14-7 

26 

12.4 

4>> 

18.8 

57 

19.0 

48 

I5-I 

217 

15-5 

(T 

21 

8-5 

40 

15-9 

55 

13-2 

85 

17.0 

I  12 

19.2 

104 

16.0 

426 

15-7 

From  seventh  to 

(B 

22 

20.  I 

12 

8.6 

20 

9-8 

24 

IO.O 

23 

8.1 

20 

8-7 

130 

IO.O 

tenth  year 

G 

17 

II.9 

14 

8.4 

32 

15.2 

JJ 

11.9 

35 

ii.  8 

35 

II.  0 

164 

ii.  7 

(T 

39 

15-7 

20 

8.7 

5-' 

12.6 

55 

II.  O 

58 

IO.O 

64 

9-7 

294 

10.9 

Do  not  know 

(B 
0 

23 
31 

22.  I 
21-5 

13 

-'9 

9-5 
17.1 

16 

24 

7-8 
II.  4 

19 
30 

7-9 
II  .  i 

6 

15 

2.1 

5-0 

15 

12 

J:i 

92 
140 

7.0 

IO.O 

(T 

54 

21.8 

42 

13-7 

40 

9.6 

4^ 

9.6 

21 

3-6 

27 

4.1 

232 

8.6 

Old  enough  to 

B 

" 

4-9 

II 

7-9 

15 

7-4 

7 

3-0 

3 

i.i 

2 

.6 

43 

3-3 

know  what 

G 

20 

13-8 

13 

7-7 

ro 

4-7 

8 

3-i 

4 

1-3 

I 

-3 

56 

4-o 

money  was 

(T 

25 

10.4 

~M 

7-8 

25 

6.0 

15 

3-o 

7 

1.2 

3 

•5 

99 

3-6 

B 

2 

i.  9 

4 

2-9 

4 

2.0 

3 

.5 

i 

•4 

14 

From  eleventh  to 

<G 

6-3 

8 

4.8 

c 

2  .  4 

5 

f  2 

25 

1.7 

fifteenth  year 

(T 

I  i 

4-4 

12 

3-9 

9 

2.  2 

0 

.2 

i 

.  2 

39 

1.4 

(B 

3 

2-9 

2 

1.4 

6 

2-9 

.•; 

.2 

3 

I.O 

5 

1-5 

22 

1.6 

No  answer 

JG 

j 

I  .4 

.  I 

4 

i  -3 

IO 

.7 

T 

3 

1.2 

2 

.6 

9 

2.2 

6 

.2 

7 

1.2 

5 

".8 

32 

1.2 

(B 

i 

1.0 

4 

2-9 

2 

1.0 

i 

.5 

-7 

2 

.6 

12 

•9 

Always 

JG 

5 

3-5 

2 

I  .  2 

2 

•9 

i 

.  4 

.  7 

12 

.8 

IT 

f, 

2-4 

6 

2.0 

4 

I.O 

2 

-4 

-7 

2 

•3 

24 

-9 

(  B 

J 

2 

.  2 

Never 

G 

j 

-7 

J 

.6 

I 

-5 

•7 

... 

5 

-4 

(  T 

_ 

•  4 

J 

.  -7 

• 

.  2 

7 

^ 

.3 

B 

104 

204 

-'30 

2,S 

v>> 

... 

1304 

Total 

JG 

'44 

.... 

169 

->  i  i 

261 

999 

H« 

1402 

(T 

248 

307.- 

MS 

— 

$00 



S»3 



>S3 

2706 

The  table  shows  that  fifteen  and  seven-tenths  per 
cent  wanted  money  before  they  were  three  years  old, 
and  thirty  and  six-tenths  per  cent  before  they  were  five, 
or  forty-six  and  three -tenths  per  cent  wanted  money 
before  they  were  of  school  age.  It  is  safe  to  claim  that 
out  of  the  classes,  "Do  not  know,"  "Old  enough  to 
know  what  money  was,"  and  "Always,"  enough  can  be 
added  to  the  forty-six  and  three-tenths  per  cent  to  make 
over  fifty  per  cent,  so  that  it  is  correct  to  say  that  more 
than  one-half  of  the  children  canvassed  were  less  than 
five  years  old  when  they  first  wanted  money.  About 


STUDIES   AND    OBSERVATIONS 


nine- tenths  of  them  wanted  money  before  they  were  ten 
years  of  age.  It  is  not  a  wise  deduction  to  conclude 
that  children  should  be  given  money  as  soon  as  they 
want  it.  Parents  wisely  deny  many  of  their  imagined 
wants,  because  born  only  out  of  some  passing  fancy  and 
not  springing  out  of  real  need.  But  that  this  desire 
lays  hold  of  the  children  so  much  earlier  and  in  larger 
numbers  than  is  commonly  supposed,  raises  the  ques- 
tion whether  it  might  not  be  advisable  to  begin  earlier 
to  train  what  might  be  called  the  money  sense  in  children. 

Training  here  does  not  mean  fostering  or  stimulating 
this  desire  for  money,  since,  possibly,  our  atmosphere 
has  already  too  much  of  the  commercial  ozone  in  it, 
but  curbing,  controlling  and  directing  it  into  safe  chan- 
nels. To  stimulate  commercial  precocity  is  likely  to 
prove  even  more  disastrous  than  in  stimulating  precocity 
in  other  directions.  It  must  also  be  conceded  that  a 
feeling  so  general  needs  an  outlet.  Sitting  on  a  safety 
valve  does  not  commend  itself  as  either  a  wise  or  safe 
policy. 

The  following  is  a  tabular  statement  of  the  answers 
given  in  response  to  the  question: 

Do  YOUR   PARENTS,   EACH  WEEK  OR  MONTH,   GIVE 
You  MONEY  TO  USE? 


B 

Eighth 

Seventh 

Sixth 

Fifth 

Fourth 

Third 

Total 

NO. 

^ 

% 
36-5 

NO. 

68 

% 
40-3 

NO. 
IDS 

% 
51-5 

NO. 

141 

%  NO. 
59.0  196 

% 

NO.!  %  |  NO. 
235*70.  1  783 

% 
60.0 

69.0 

Do 

G 
T 

80 

1x8 

55-5  QO 
47.6158 

53-3 
SI-S 

127  60.2 
232  55-9 

1  66 

.so; 

63.6  211 
61.4  407 

70.6 

69.8 

a 

73-3 
71.6 

907  64.7 
1690  62.5 

B 

66 

6vS 

70 

50-7 

00 

48.5 

08 

41.0  88 

31.0 

100 

29-0 

521 

40.0 

Do  not 

6 

64 

44-5 

70 

46.7 

84 

39-8 

OS 

36-4  88 

29.4 

8s 

26.7 

495 

3S-3 

T 

130 

52.4 

140 

48-5 

183  44.1 

193 

38.6  176 

30.2 

i«5 

28.4 

1016  37.5 

B 

104 

n8 

204 

.... 

230 

.... 

284 

335 

1304 

Total 

G 

144 

I6Q 

211 

.... 

261 

2QO 

.... 

3i« 

1402 

.... 

T  248  

307 

4JS 



500 

....  583 

653 



2706 

IN   THE   SCHOOL-ROOM  71 

Some  misgivings  were  felt  as  to  the  wisdom  of  asking, 
"Do  your  parents,  each  week  or  month,  give  you  money 
to  use?"  We  wished  to  avoid  suggesting  the  thought 
to  those  who  were  not  receiving  allowances,  that  their 
parents  were  neglecting  them,  or  that  they  were  in  any 
wise  entitled  to  receive  such  allowance.  But  our  desire 
to  learn  how  far  parents  were  attempting  to  train  their 
children  in  the  use  of  money  overcame  the  misgivings, 
and  the  question  was  given  a  place  on  the  list. 

Sixty-two  and  five-tenths  per  cent  of  Sioux  City  school 
children  are  given  money  to  use.  Presumably,  two- 
thirds  of  Sioux  City  parents  deem  it  wise  to  give  money 
to  their  children  to  use.  How  far  the  remaining  one- 
third  of  the  parents,  who  do  not  give  money  to  their 
children  to  use,  are  prevented  from  giving  by  lack  of 
means,  or  deem  it  best  for  the  children's  interests  to 
withhold,  this  investigation  does  not  disclose.  It  would 
prove  quite  suggestive,  if  the  facts  were  set  forth,  as  to 
how  many  parents,  either  in  giving  or  withholding,  are 
actuated  by  the  intelligent  desire  to  train  wisely  this 
money  sense  in  their  children.  Some  inferences  that 
can  be  read  between  the  lines  suggest  that  the  giving 
in  many  instances  is  actuated  more  by  the  desire  to 
please  the  children  than  in  the  desire  to  train  them  in 
the  value  and  use  of  money,  and  to  form  right  habits 
of  economy  and  thrift. 

The  fact  that  there  is  a  gradual  decrease  from  third 
grade  to  eighth  in  the  per  cent  of  those  who  give  (start- 
ing at  seventy  one  and  six-tenths  per  cent  in  third  grade, 
and  ending  at  forty-seven  and  six-tenths  per  cent  in 
eighth  grade),  is  open,  at  least,  to  two  interpretations: 
It  may  be  due  simply  to  the  desire  of  indulging  the  younger 


72  STUDIES   AND    OBSERVATIONS 

children,  because  of  their^  dependent  conditions,  or  to  the 
thought  thaf  the  older  pupils,  since  they  have  some  earn- 
ing power,  should  be  thrown  more  upon  their  own  re- 
sources. The  more  rapid  decrease  among  the  boys, 
from  seventy  and  one-tenth  per  cent  in  third  grade  to 
thirty-six  and  five-tenths  per  cent  in  eighth  grade,  while 
the  girls  range  in  corresponding  grades  from  seventy- 
three  and  three-tenths  per  cent  to  fifty-five  and  five- 
tenths  per  cent,  indicates  that  giving  by  parents  is  with- 
held somewhat  in  proportion  as  earning  power,  or  op- 
portunity to  ea'rn,  is  increased  in  the  children. 

How  USE  THE  FIVE  DOLLARS? 

The  responses  to  the  question,  "If  you  had  five  dollars 
what  would  you  do  with  them?"  are  not  easily  tabu- 
lated, but  follow  quite  closely  the  channels  of  expendi- 
ture, which  were  indicated  in  the  replies  given  to  "Why 
do  you  wish  to  earn  money?"  About  two-fifths  of  them 
wish  to  spend  the  five  dollars  for  food,  clothing  or 
some  useful  article.  Three-tenths  quickly  decide  that 
they  will  not  spend  any  of  them,  but  save  all  for  future 
use.  One-twentieth  just  as  promptly  decides  to  spend 
what  was  given  to  them,  thus  affording  another  illustra- 
tion of  "Come  easy,  go  easy."  Another  twentieth,  actu- 
ated by  wiser  motives,  decides  to  hand  over  the  five  dollars 
to  their  parents.  Quite  a  notable  sprinkling  of  them 
decide  to  help  the  poor,  while  others,  not  quite  so  phil- 
anthropic, compromise  the  egoistic  and  altruistic  spirit, 
which  struggled  within  them  for  the  mastery,  by  deciding 
to  spend  part  for  their  own  pleasure  and  give  the  balance 
to  the  poor. 

The  remainder  of  the  responses  are  so  scattered  as 


IN   THE   SCHOOL-ROOM  73 

to  give  only  glimpses  of  individual  peculiarities,  such 
as:  "Give  to  the  Babies'  Home."  "Give  to  the  church." 
"Give  three  dollars  to  the  Lord  and  save  the  rest." 
"Let  parents  decide."  "Would  think  I  was  rich." 
"Join  the  Golf  Club."  "Have  a  good  time."  "Put 
them  in  my  pocket." 

There  is  abundant  evidence  in  the  answers  that,  in 
all  the  grades,  there  is  need  of  wiser  training  in  refer- 
ence to  the  proper  use  of  money.  But  the  greatest  lack 
of  training  is  manifest  in  a  proper  appreciation  of  values, 
or  what  the  five  dollars  ought  to  buy.  This  is  true, 
not  only  in  the  lower,  but  also  in  the  higher  grades.  A 
third  grade  boy  intends  to  buy  a  cow  with  his  five  dol- 
lars; another  to  pay  the  house  rent.  A  fourth  grade 
girl  says,  "I  would  rather  buy  myself  a  pair  of  shoes, 
and  my  baby  sister  a  cup  and  saucer,  and  a  rocking 
horse,  and  a  rubber  doll,  and  other  things."  Another, 
"Would  buy  my  cousin,  mother,  father,  and  brother  a 
present,  and  me  some  shoes  and  stockings,  necktie, 
collar,  cuffs,  and  a  nice  silk  flag  for  the  school."  Still 
another,  "Would  put  the  five  dollars  in  the  bank  till  I 
had  enough  to  go  to  Paris."  A  fifth  grade  boy,  "Would 
buy  two  sheep,  a  hog  or  an  Indian  pony."  A  girl  of 
same  grade,  "Would  buy  grandma  some  coal  for  the 
winter."  A  seventh  grade  boy,  "Would  invest  the  five 
dollars  in  a  hog  or  cow,"  while  another,  "Would  buy  a 
bucket  of  oysters.' 

Quite  a  number  of  boys  manifest  the  business  instinct 
in  planning  to  invest  their  five  dollars  in  a  little  pig  or 
calf,  which,  as  it  grows  up,  may  bring  them  a  large  per 
cent  of  increase.  These,  of  course,  will  become  the 
future  cattle  kings  of  Sioux  City.  In  striking  contrast 


74  STUDIES    AND    OBSERVATIONS 

to  this  thrifty  spirit,  there  are  others  who  "Would  blow 
it  all  on  myself  and  mother,"  or  "Would  buy  a  pair  of 
shoes  and  go  to  shows."  These,  just  as  surely,  will 
become  the  future  bankrupts  of  Sioux  City,  or  worse  still, 
be  unable  to  provide  for  themselves  and  their  children 
even  the  shoes  to  go  to  shows. 

CONCLUSIONS 

This  investigation  seems  to  justify  the  following  gen- 
eral conclusions  concerning  Sioux  City  children  between 
the  ages  of  nine  and  fourteen: 

1.  That  over  ninety-six  per  cent  of  them  arc  fairly 
well  acquainted  with  the  term  money. 

2.  That    over   ninety-seven    per    cent    want    to    earn 
money. 

3.  That   about   two- thirds  want   to  earn  money  for 
worthy    purposes,    two-sevenths    do    not    disclose    their 
motives,  and  only  one-fourteenth  desire  to  earn  money 
for  unworthy  purposes. 

4.  That  more  than  one-half  had  their  first  desire  for 
money  before  they  were  five   years  of  age,   and  nine- 
tenths  before  they  were  ten. 

5.  That  this   early  and   almost   universal  desire  for 
money  demands  thoughtful  consideration  and  wise  training. 

6.  That  nearly  two-thirds  are  given  money  to  use, 
but  there  are  indications  that  not  enough  care  is  given  to 
develop  thrift  and  economy  in  the  use  of  the  money  given. 

7.  That  a  more  accurate  appreciation  of  values  should 
be  taught  by  both  parents  and  teachers. 

8.  That  the  commercial  instinct  among  the  children 
does  not  require  stimulating,  but  curbing  and  directing 
into  right  channels. 


CHAPTER   VII 

CHILDREN'S   READING 

The  schools  of  to-day  which  are  proving  themselves 
most  efficient  in  training  up  good  citizens,  are  those 
which  are  studying  conditions  outside  of  the  school- 
room and  are  shaping  instruction  and  training,  so  as  to 
prepare  the  pupils  for  active  participation  in  the  world's 
work.  They  are  also  studying  conditions  and  influences 
outside  of  the  school- room,  in  order  to  improve  them 
and  overcome,  as  far  as  possible,  those  that  are  adverse 
to  the  children's  best  development. 

Observing  teachers  have  learned  that  the  books  read 
outside  of  school  often  exercise  a  more  powerful  influence 
in  the  moulding  and  building  of  character  than  those 
studied  in  school.  Too  frequently  the  teacher  is  con- 
fronted with  the  sad  fact  that  the  reading  of  trashy 
stories,  stories  presenting  low  and  unworthy  motives  and 
ideals,  is  neutralizing  all  efforts  on  her  part  to  build  up 
right  habits  and  worthy  conduct. 

Recognizing  the  duty  and  privilege  of  the  school  to 
reach  outside  of  the  school-room,  and  try  to  shape  the 
reading  of  the  pupils,  the  following  communication  was 
sent  out  from  the  superintendent's  office: 

In  this  age  of  books,  children  will  read.  They  will 
read  either  that  which  is  helpful  and  uplifting,  or  harm- 
ful and  demoralizing.  Unless  aided  by  those  of  maturer 
and  wiser  judgment,  they  will  read  either  kind  with  about 

75 


76  STUDIES   AND    OBSERVATIONS 

the  same  avidity.  Under  these  conditions,  teachers  must 
interest  themselves  in  the  best  reading  for  boys  and  girls, 
so  that  they  may  wisely  direct  the  reading  of  their  pupils. 
The  first  plain  duty  is  that  each  teacher  acquaints  her- 
self with  the  reading  in  which  her  pupils  are  indulging. 
It  was  believed  that  the  best  way  to  secure  this  neces- 
sary information  was  to  present  the  matter,  in  the  form 
of  a  language  exercise,  to  grades  above  the  third,  and 
without  disclosing  that  there  was  a  deeper  purpose  in- 
volved. The  following  questions  were  used: 

QUESTIONS  FOR  A  LANGUAGE  EXERCISE 

1.  What  books  or  stories  have  you  read,  or  have  been 
read  to  you  this  school  year? 

2.  Which  did  you  like  best?    Why? 

3.  What  papers  and  magazines  do  you   read  regu- 
larly? 

4.  Which  do  you  like  best  ?     Why  ? 

5.  If  you  had  money  to  buy  a  book,  what  book  would 
you  buy? 

Further  suggestions  were  given  to  make  out  a  summary 
of  the  answers  given  and  to  forward  the  same  to  the 
superintendent's  office.  When  needed,  try  to  direct  read- 
ing into  more  wholesome  and  uplifting  channels.  Much 
can  be  done  to  stimulate  the  reading  of  good  books,  by 
calling  attention  to  those  books  which  are  most  interest- 
ing and  helpful,  as  well  as  reading  an  occasional  choice 
selection  to  the  school.  Each  teacher  should  be  thor- 
oughly familiar  with  the  books  which  are  best  suited  to 
the  children  of  her  grade. 

Attention  was  also  called  to  an  article  in  the  December 
(1903)  number  of  the  Review  of  Reviews,  entitled,  "Some 


IN  THE  SCHOOL-ROOM  77 

Things  a  Boy  of  Seventeen  Should  Have  Had  an  Oppor- 
tunity to  Read,"  by  H.  L.  Elmendorf.  The  following 
is  a  partial  list  of  what  he  recommends: 

Begin  with  Scott's  lullaby,  "Oh,  hush  thee,  my  babie," 
Tennyson's  "Sweet  and  Low,"  and  Kingsley's  "Water 
Babies,"  followed  by  Welsh's  "A  Book  of  Nursery 
Rhymes,"  and  thus  provide  for  his  early  years.  For 
hero  tales  and  legends,  Hawthorne's  "Wonder  Book," 
and  "Tanglewood  Tales,"  or  Kingsley's  "The  Heroes 
or  Greek  Fairy  Tales;  also  Mabie's  "Norse  Stories  Re- 
told," Litchfield's  "The  Nine  Worlds,"  Lang,  Leaf 
and  Myers'  Versions  of  the  Iliad,  Perry's  "The  Boys' 
Odyssey,"  Malory's  "Morte  d'  Arthur,"  Tennyson's 
"Idylls  of  the  King,"  and  Lanier's  "The  Boy's  King 
Arthur." 

In  Biblical  literature,  Gilder's  "The  Bible  for  Chil- 
dren," and  Moulton's  "Bible  Stories." 

In  English  classics,  "Robinson  Crusoe,"  "Gulliver's 
Travels,"  "The  Swiss  Family  Robinson,"  "Pilgrim's 
Progress,"  Lanier's  "The  Boys'  Froissart,"  Pyle's  "Men 
of  Iron,"  Yonge's  "Lances  of  Lynwood,"  Doyle's  "White 
Company,"  Scott's  "Ivanhoe,"  and  "Quentin  Durward." 

Under  poetry,  Wiggin's  "The  Posy  Ring"  and  "Golden 
Numbers,"  Repplier's  "A  Book  of  Famous  Verse,"  Hen- 
ley's "Lyra  Heroica,"  Longfellow's  "Hiawatha,"  Mac- 
aulay's  "Lays  of  Ancient  Rome,"  Scott's  "Lady  of  the 
Lake,"  "Marmion,"  and  "The  Lay  of  the  Last  Min- 
strel," Whittier's  "Snow  Bound,"  Longfellow's  "Evan- 
geline,"  up  to  Milton  and  Dante. 

Under  nature  books,  ^sop's  "Fables,"  Kipling's  "  Jun- 
gle Books,"  Morgan's  "Animal  Sketches,"  Ingersoll's 
"Wild  Life  of  Orchard  and  Field,"  Homiday's  "Two 


78  STUDIES   AND    OBSERVATIONS 

Years  in  a  Jungle,"  Du  Chaillu's  "  World  of  the  Great 
Forest,"  Harris'  "  Uncle  Remus  Tales,"  Chapman's 
"Bird  Life,"  and  Dugmore's  "  Nature  and  the  Camera." 

In  history,  "Plutarch's  Lives,"  Brock's  "True  Story 
of  George  Washington,"  Indian  Stories  by  Drake,  Hale 
and  Gordon,  Parkman's  "Oregon  Trail,"  Wister's 
"Grant,"  Schurtz's  "Lincoln,"  Dana's  "Lincoln  and 
His  Cabinet,"  with  some  of  Fiske's,  Motley's  and  Mac- 
aulay's  works. 

If  the  writer  were  to  recommend  some  things  which 
a  girl  of  seventeen  should  have  had  opportunity  to  read, 
the  list  would  vary  but  little  from  the  excellent  one  re- 
commended by  Mr.  Elmendorf  for  the  boys. 

Not  to  lose  sight  of  the  special  needs  of  the  girls,  atten- 
tion is  called  to  some  wise  suggestions  made  by  Professor 
Henry  Van  Dyke,  of  Princeton,  concerning 

THE  BEST  POETRY  FOR  GIRLS 

"The  best  poems  for  children  to  read  and  enjoy,  after 
the  period  of  the  rattle  and  the  go-cart  is  passed,  are 
not  found  in  books  produced  for  juvenile  consumption. 
The  richest  and  most  rewarding  compilations  of  poetry 
that  can  be  put  into  the  hands  of  young  readers  are  such 
as  Palgrave's  /Golden  Treasury  of  Songs  and  Lyrics,' 
and  Mrs.  Kate  Douglas  Wiggin's  Golden  Numbers, 
which  gather  their  material  from  the  best  books  of  all 
ages,  like  Percy's  'Reliques,'  and  Milton's  'Minor  Poems,' 
and  Wordsworth's  'Lyrical  Ballads,'  and  Scott's  'Min- 
strelsy of  the  Border,'  and  Longfellow's  'Voices  of  the 
Night.'  I  remember  well  that  the  four  poems  which  my 
children  loved  most  when  they  were  little  were  Shake- 
speare's '  Under  the  Greenwood  Tree,'  Wordsworth's '  Lucy 


IX    THE   SCHOOL-ROOM  79 

Gray,'  and  'A  March  Morning,'  and  Longfellow's  'The 
Wreck  of  the  Schooner  Hesperus.'  It  is  as  easy  to  like 
good  things  as  it  is  to  like  poor  stuff.  The  young  idea 
may  be  trained  to  shoot  on  a  fair  trellis  of  excellent  pro- 
portions as  quickly  and  as  happily  as  on  a  cheap  and 
ugly  cast-iron  fence.  .  .  . 

"She  might  well  begin  with  carefully  made  volumes  of 
selections  giving  the  very  best  of  certain  poets  —  of  Scott, 
of  Wordsworth,  of  Shelley,  of  Tennyson,  of  Browning. 
Among  these  she  would  probably  have  a  favorite,  and 
she  would  go  on  to  read  all  that  he  had  written.  Or 
perhaps  she  would  begin  with  Whittier's  "Snow  Bound,' 
or  Longfellow's  'Evangeline,'  or  Lowell's  'Vision  of  Sir 
Launfal,'  or  Emerson's  'May-Day';  and  from  this, 
should  be  drawn  along  to  a  real  intimacy  with  the  best 
works  of  all  the  American  poets.  .  .  . 

"While  I  should  be  glad  if  this  girl  of  mine  had  a 
favorite  poet,  I  should  try  to  put  her  on  her  guard  against 
being  exclusive  in  her  partiality.  I  should  like  her  to 
turn  back  to  the  beginnings  of  English  poetry  and  learn 
to  know  the  vigor  and  freshness  of  old  Chaucer's  tales, 
the  opulence  of  Spenser's  verse,  the  many-sided  splendor 
and  wisdom  of  Shakespeare,  the  lyric  perfection  and 
the  epic  grandeur  of  Milton,  the  sinewy  strength  of  Dry- 
den,  the  clear,  cold  brilliancy  of  Pope,  the  warm  human- 
ity of  Burns,  the  pensive  sadness  of  Gray,  the  gentle 
familiarity  of  Cowper,  the  force  of  Byron,  the  rich  beauty 
of  the  ever-youthful  Keats.  Then  she  should  turn  to  the 
poetry  of  other  ages  and  lands  and  read — in  the  original 
if  she  could,  but  if  not,  then  in  the  best  translations  — 
Homer  and  Vergil  and  Horace  and  Goethe  and  Schiller  and 
Corneille  and  Dante  and  Racine  and  Victor  Hugo.  .  .  . 


OF  THE 

{   UNIVERSITY  J 
£u.<FOR»ttb 


8o  STUDIES   AND   OBSERVATIONS 


tt 


All  the  time,  in  her  reading  of  poetry,  she  should 
remember  that  the  first  object  is  to  get  pleasure  out  of 
it;  not  mere  sensual  pleasure,  but  imaginative,  creative, 
spiritual  pleasure,  which  has  in  itself  a  life-giving  and 
elevating  and  enlarging  power.  What  Wordsworth  says 
should  come  true  for  her: 

"  'And  vital  feeling  of  delight 

Should  rear  her  form  to  statelier  height, 
Her  virgin  bosom  swell.' 

"She  should  grow  to  understand  that  pleasure,  after 
all,  is  one  of  the  deepest  and  most  subtle  tests  of  char- 
acter; and  that  if  one  desires  to  be  noble  one  must  learn 
how  to  like  and  enjoy  noble  things.  Poetry  should  not 
unfit  her  for  real  life  by  leading  her  into  a  world  of  opiate 
visions;  but  rather  it  should  reveal  to  her  the  hidden 
significance  of  the  world,  and  fit  her  for  real  life  by  giving 
her  thoughts  and  hopes  and  ideals  which  would  bring  a 
deeper  purpose  into  her  work,  a  richer  meaning  into  her 
dreams,  a  sweeter  comfort  into  her  companionship,  and 
a  glory  into  her  love." 

READING  IN  FOURTH  GRADE 

In  summarizing  the  results  of  the  investigation  of  the 
reading  of  fourth  grade  pupils,  as  well  as  those  of  other 
grades,  the  danger  of  too  broad  generalizations  is  recog- 
nized, and  little  is  attempted  in  that  direction. 

The  number  of  books  and  stories  read  in  four  months 
by  about  six  hundred  fourth  grade  pupils  amounted  to 
three  thousand  six  hundred  fifty-five.  This  gives  an 
average  of  about  six  books  for  each  pupil  for  that  period, 
or  one  and  a  half  books  or  stories  a  month.  As  many 


IN    THE   SCHOOL-ROOM  81 

of  these  books  are  small  and  stories  short,  the  average  is 
not  excessive,  although  when  it  is  recalled  that  some  of 
the  six  hundred  have  read  scarcely  nothing,  it  suggests 
the  inquiry  whether  some  have  not  read  too  much. 

We  are  all  familiar  with  the  fact  that  the  pupil  who 
does  much  home  reading,  ranks  usually  above  the  average 
of  his  class,  and  that  the  non-reading  pupil  usually  lacks 
in  ideas  and  fluency  of  speech.  But  there  may  be  such 
voracious  readers,  so  much  time  devoted  to  outside  read- 
ing, that  school  work  may  be  slighted  in  consequence. 
Surely  the  voracious  as  well  as  the  non-reader  needs 
careful  attention. 

BOOKS  READ  MOST 

The  following  is  a  partial  list  of  the  books,  showing  the 
number  of  readers  of  each,  arranged  in  numerical  order: 

Robinson  Crusoe  117  Little  Men  31 

Black  Beauty  102  Alice  in  Wonderland  31 

Birds'  Christmas  Carol  101  Seven  Little  Sisters  30 

Longfellow's  Poems  82  Boys  of  Seventy-Six  30 

Wild  Animals  I  Have  Known        75  Life  of  Lincoln  30 

Beautiful  Joe  71  Uncle  Tom's  Cabin  30 

Ruby  and  Ruthy  57  Life  of  Franklin  30 

Bible  Stories  53  History  of  United  States  29 

Hiawatha  52  Gods  and  Heroes  28 

Aladdin's  Lamp  45  Tom  Thatcher's  Fortune  28 

The  Little  Clown  43  Two  Little  Savages  28 

Water  Babies  42  Eskimo  Cousin  26 

Emmy  Lou  40  Puss  in  Boots  25 

Whittier's  Poems  40  Pilgrims  and  Puritans  23 

Story  of  the  Pilgrims  40  Little  Lord  Fauntleroy  21 

Willis'  Poems  40  Five  Little  Peppers  15 

First  Book  of  Birds  38  Fairy  Tales  13 

Life  of  Columbus  36  Around  the  World  12 

Wilderness  Ways  35  Story  of  Troy  12 

Bears  of  Blue  River  35  Arabian  Nights  10 

/Esop's  Fables  35  Swiss  Family  Robinson  10 

Little  Women  32  Sara  Crewe  ID 


82  STUDIES   AND    OBSERVATIONS 

WHY  BOOKS  MOST  POPULAR 

Naturally  some  of  the  preferences  of  these  fourth 
grade  children  are  based  upon  unimportant  features,  but 
often  they  show  commendable  discrimination.  "Beauti- 
ful Joe,"  the  book  liked  best,  was  given  the  preference 
because  "  Joe  was  good."  "It  told  about  animals."  "It 
told  so  many  things."  "Black  Beauty"  because  "It 
tells  how  horses  act."  "A  horse  can  talk."  One  boy 
had  a  bad  spell  of  excitement  when  he  characterized  it 
as  "awfully  excitabling." 

"Robinson  Crusoe"  was  liked  "Because  of  the  adven- 
tures." "Because  it  is  so  interesting  and  will  teach  me 
how  to  make  things  when  I  am  alone."  Here  is  an  inter- 
esting and  somewhat  original  characterization:  "Because 
it  is  sorry."  "Uncle  Tom's  Cabin"  was  much  appreci- 
ated because  it  was  true  and  sad. 

BOOKS  LIKED  BEST 

Beautiful  Joe  16  Tom  Thatcher's  Fortune  u 

Black  Beauty  15  Robinson  Crusoe  10 

Birds'  Christmas  Carol  15  Longfellow's  Poems  10 

Bible  Stories  12  Boys  of  Seventy-Six  10 

Bears  of  Blue  River  12  Two  Little  Savages  10 

POPULAR  NEWSPAPERS 

Evening  News  (local  paper)  115  Mining  Journal  12 

Mining  Gazette  (local  paper)  88  Ladies'  Home  Journal  1 1 

Youth's  Companion  50  Collier's  Weekly  10 

Chicago  American  23  Saturday  Evening  Post  10 

The  most  popular  lines  of  newspaper  reading  in  fourth 
grades  were  as  follows: 

Longfellow's  Poems  31  Birds'  Christmas  Carol  13 

Robinson  Crusoe  30  Beautiful  Joe  12 

Black  Beauty  30  Fairy  Tales  12 

Bible  21  Bible  Stories  10 

Uncle  Tom's  Cabin  15  United  States  History  10 

Two  Little  Savages  14  Life  of  McKinley  10 


IN  THE  SCHOOL-ROOM  83 

WHY  MOST  POPULAR 

In  regard  to  the  daily  press,  the  reasons  assigned  for 
preferences  were  largely  along  the  lines  of  furnishing 
important  news,  the  larger  part  of  it  of  a  local  character. 
Some  of  the  characteristic  replies  were:  "You  can  find 
out  everything  nearly."  "Tells  about  the  troubles  of 
the  world."  "Tells  about  stocks."  "Tells  about  base- 
ball and  hockey."  One  boy  earnestly  puts  it:  "Be's 
about  the  ball  games."  "Tells  about  dangerous  things." 
"Has  a  page  for  boys  and  girls."  "Has  riddles  and 
puzzles."  "Lots  of  interesting  things  and  lots  of  pic- 
tures." Several  boys  with  a  strong  commercial  bias 
prefer  a  certain  paper  because  they  peddle  it.  Quite  a 
number  say:  "It  tells  things  so  that  I  can  understand 
them."  The  saddest  comment  is  the  following:  "I  don't 
read  them,  they  ain't  no  good."  Poor  boy,  he  doesn't 
understand  his  need  nor  his  loss. 

BOOKS  THEY  WOULD  BUY 

Biography  of  a  Grizzly  148  Man  without  a  Country  24 

Wild  Animals  I  Have  Known      114  Burnham  Breakers  22 

Lives  of  the  Hunted  95  Life  of  Washington  22 

Teddy  and  Carrots  86  Jo's  Boys  18 

Uncle'  Tom's  Cabin  82  Fairy  Tales  18 

Little  Colonel  80  Birds'  Christmas  Carol  17 

Black  Beauty  61  Life  of  Rosa  Bonheur  16 

Mrs.  Wiggs  of  the  Cabbage  Patch  56  Under  the  Lilacs  16 

Story  of  the  Christ-Child  56  The  Deerslayer  15 

Melody  48  Boy's  King  Arthur  14 

Little  Women  41  Wonder  Book  14 

Little  Men  40  Swiss  Family  Robinson  13 

Eben  Holden  40  Peck's  Bad  Boy  13 

Story  of  Dago  40  Winning  His  Way  13 

Margot  40  Bears  of  Blue  River  13 

Captain  January  40  Life  of  Millet  13 

Emmy  Lou  40  Hans  Brinker  12 

Boys  of  Seventy-Six  38  Pilgrim's  Progress  u 

Robinson  Crusoe  36  Life  of  Lincoln  n 

Beautiful  Joe  35  Treasure  Island  10 

Civil  War  30  Story  of  West  Point  10 

Ciirls  of  Seventv-Six  24 


84  STUDIES   AND    OBSERVATIONS 

The  list  of  books,  both  in  " Books  Liked  Best"  and  in 
"  Books  They  Would  Buy,"  is  small  because  only  books 
preferred  by  ten  or  more  are  mentioned,  and  because 
many  failed  to  indicate  their  preferences.  However,  as 
far  as  indicated,  their  choices  were  generally  excellent. 
That  there  may  be  some  books  liked  and  read  whose 
titles  do  not  appear  and  whose  general  tone  is  not  so 
wholesome,  is  not  improbable,  but  the  encouraging  fact 
still  remains  that  the  era  of  dime  novels  and  nickel 
libraries  is  practically  past.  While  the  parents  and  the 
schools  are  to  be  congratulated  over  this  encouraging 
advance,  yet  vigilance  must  not  be  relaxed  in  ferreting 
out  the  few  trashy  books  which  are  still  read. 

READING  IN  FIFTH  GRADE 

The  whole  number  of  pupils  whose  reading  was  can- 
vassed in  fifth  grade  was  four  hundred  seventy-four. 
These  read  in  the  four  months  two  thousand  three  hun- 
dred twenty-nine  stories,  or  an  average  of  nearly  five  read 
in  that  period.  The  books  read  most  were  as  follows: 

Boys  of  Seventy-Six  14     Bears  of  Blue  River  10 

Teddy  and  Carrots  10     Story  of  West  Point  10 

Black  Beauty  10     Two  Little  Savages  10 

POPULAR  NEWSPAPERS 

Mining  Gazette  (local  paper)  123  Saturday  Evening  Post  20 

Evening  News  (local  paper)  108  Collier's  Weekly  12 

Youth's  Companion  57  Harper's  Weekly  n 

Ladies'  Home  Journal  36  American  Boy  n 

Chicago  Record -Herald  23  Woman's  World  10 

Chicago  American  23 

BOOKS  LIKED  BEST 

History  of  United  States  18  Little  Women  10 

Wild  Animals  I  Have  Known  17  Teddy  and  Carrots  10 

Robinson  Crusoe  n  Black  Beauty  10 

Uncle  Tom's  Cabin  n  Burnham  Breakers  10 


IN   THE   SCHOOL-ROOM 


BOOKS  THEY  WOULD  BUY 


Mrs.  Wiggs  of  the  Cabbage  Patch 

David  Copperfield 

Lives  of  the  Hunted 

Winning  His  Way 

Wild  Animals  I  Have  Known 

Boys  of  1812 

Lovey  Mary 


Zig-zag  Journeys 

Life  of  Lincoln 

Black  Beauty 

Beautiful  Joe 

Tom  Brown's  School  Days 

Scarlet  Tanager 

Boys  of  Seventy-Six 


READING  IN  SIXTH  GRADE 

In  sixth  grade,  three  hundred  fourteen  pupils  had  read 
nine  hundred  thirty-nine  books,  or  an  average  of  three 
in  the  four  months.  The  books  most  read  were  as 
follows : 

BOOKS  LIKED  BEST 


Mrs.  Wiggs  of  the  Cabbage  Patch 
Black  Beauty 
Beautiful  Joe 


Wild  Animals  I  Have  Known 
Winning  His  Way 
Lovey  Mary 


POPULAR  NEWSPAPERS  AND  MAGAZINES 


Youth's  Companion 
Ladies'  Home  Journal 
Collier's  Weekly 
Harper's  Monthly 


Munsey 
Mining  Gazette 
Chicago  American 
Evening  News 


BOOKS  THEY  WOULD  BUY 

Mrs.  Wiggs  of  the  Cabbage  Patch         Wild  Animals  I  Have  Known 
Beautiful  Joe  Black  Beauty. 


Uncle  Tom's  Cabin 
Lovey  Mary 

READING  IN  SEVENTH 

Birds'  Christmas  Carol  107 

Wild  Animals  I  Have  Known  95 

Mysterious  Island  95 
Mrs.  Wiggs  of  the  Cabbage  Patch  53 

Lady  of  the  Lake  52 

A  Tory  Plot  52 

Boys  of  the  Rincon  Ranch  52 

Merchant  of  Venice  49 

Robinson  Crusoe  47 

Stories  of  Long  Ago  47 


Swiss  Family  Robinson 
History  of  United  States 

AND  EIGHTH  GRADES 

A-Hunting  of  the  Deer 

Lives  of  the  Hunted 

Up  from  Slavery 

Uncle  Sam's  Secrets 

Yellowstone  Park  Series 

Enoch  Arden 

Old  Curiosity  Shop 

Ivanhoe 

Great  Stone  Face 

Evangeline 


47 
47 
42 
42 
42 
39 
35 
3° 
23 

21 


86  STUDIES   AND    OBSERVATIONS 

One  hundred  seventy-six  seventh  and  eighth  grade 
pupils  had  read  two  thousand  one  hundred  forty-six 
books  and  stories,  or  an  average  of  about  twelve  in  the 
four  months.  The  books  most  read  were  as  follows: 

BOOKS  LIKED  BEST 

Uncle  Sam's  Secrets  Mrs.  Wiggs  of  the  Cabbage  Patch 

Up  from  Slavery  Boys  of  the  Rincon  Ranch 

Mysterious  Island  Dickens'  Works 

POPULAR  NEWSPAPERS 

Week's  Current  116  Saturday  Evening  Post  36 

Evening  News  (local)  96  Collier's' Weekly  13 

Mining  Gazette  (local)  85  Success  10 

Ladies'  Home  Journal  44  American  Boy  10 

Ytmth's  Companion  38  Woman's  Home  Companion  10 

BOOKS  THEY  WOULD  BUY 

Old  Curiosity  Shop  Mysterious  Island 

Merchant  of  Venice  Wild  Animals  I  Have  Known 

Uncle  Tom's  Cabin  Mrs.  Wiggs  of  the  Cabbage  Patch 

WHY  BOOKS  WERE  MOST  POPULAR 

In  the  upper  grades  the  following  were  some  of  the 
characteristic  reasons  for  liking  certain  books: 

"Beautiful  Joe"  was  liked  "Because  it  teaches  us  to 
be  good  to  animals  and  also  teaches  us  that  they  have 
souls  as  well  as  we  have.  The  "Story  of  the  Pilgrims" 
was  popular  because  "They  prayed  lots  and  made  Thanks- 
giving." "I  liked  the  story  of  'Little  Lord  Fauntleroy' 
best  because  Lord  Fauntleroy  was  a  brave  loving  boy 
and  was  always  ready  to  help  anybody."  "I  like  'Hans 
Brinker'  best  because  it  brings  such  clear  pictures  when 
you  read  it."  "I  like  the  'Silver  Medal'  best  because 
it  is  a  good  story  for  boys."  "It  teaches  the  bad  boys 
to  be  good.  And  it  seems  as  if  it  was  you  that  is  in  the 


IN   THE   SCHOOL-ROOM  87 

book."  "I  like  the  'Cruise  of  the  Canoe  Club'  because 
there  is  something  in  it  that  helps  me."  "I  like  the 
'Red  Toy  Shop'  because  the  boys  wanted  to  earn  some 
money  to  help  their  father  and  mother  pay  the  rent." 
"Little  Sailor"  was  liked  "Because  it  has  noise  in  it." 

"I  liked  'Jolly  Rover'  because  there  was  good  and 
bad  in  it  and  it  will  teach  many  to  stay  at  home  and 
not  run  away  as  a  fool." 

One  boy  seemed  to  see  some  of  his  own  qualities  por- 
trayed in  "Rip  Van  Winkle"  which  led  him  to  write, 
"Rip  and  I  are  lots  alike."  "Oliver  Twist"  was  appreci- 
ated "Because  there's  something  to  it."  "Uncle  Tom's 
Cabin"  was  preferred  by  one  "Because  it  shows  feeling 
and  teaches  us  to  love  everybody  and  always  that  we 
should  be  prompt  and  do  what  we  say."  Another,  "Be- 
cause the  author  lets  the  one  who  was  treated  bad  come 
out  the  best." 

Numerous  were  the  expressions  of  appreciation  of 
"Mrs.  Wiggs  of  the  Cabbage  Patch."  Some  of  them 
ran  as  follows:  "Because  it  seems  more  real  than  the 
other  books."  "Because  they  lived  and  got  even-thing 
such  queer  ways."  "Because  Mrs.  Wiggs  who  always 
had  so  much  trouble  was  the  jolliest."  "Because  Mrs. 
Wiggs  was  never  selfish."  "Because  it  teaches  us  a 
lesson  of  kindness  and  unselfishness." 

SOME  RESULTS  AND  CONCLUSIONS 

The  foregoing  investigation  gave  the  teachers,  and  in 
some  cases  also  the  parents,  a  much  better  acquaintance 
with  their  children's  reading,  and  the  thoughts  suggested 
in  the  minds  of  the  children  by  their  reading.  It  afforded 
them  also  one  of  the  best  means  of  becoming  better  ac- 


88  STUDIES   AND   OBSERVATIONS 

quainted  with  the  inner  life  of  their  children,  that  ac- 
quaintance which  opens  up  so  many  doors  of  oppor- 
tunity to  the  alert  teacher  for  the  building  of  right  char- 
acter. 

It  was  an  agreeable  revelation  that  the  children  were 
so  generally  appreciative  of  and  responsive  to  the  whole- 
some and  uplifting  sentiments  which  characterized  nearly 
all  the  books  read,  and  that  they  were  able  to  voice  in 
some  degree  their  appreciation.  To  fill  and  thrill  a 
child's  soul  with  the  noble  sentiments  presented  in  some 
choice  story,  is  to  inaugurate  a  process  of  soul  enlarge- 
ment, to  which  no  limits  can  be  set.  It  means  much  to 
arouse  the  finer,  the  nobler  feelings  in  the  child,  but  it 
means  still  more  when  he  becomes  conscious  of  those 
nobler  feelings,  and  can  intelligently  clothe  them  in 
appropriate  language,  or  give  them  voice. 

On  the  othej  hand,  the  investigation  also  made  clear 
that  at  least  three  lines  of  work  should  be  continued  by 
teachers  and  parents:  To  induce  the  few  non-readers 
to  take  up  some  wholesome  line  of  reading;  to  develop  a 
more  discriminating  taste  for  the  best  literature;  to  re- 
strain a  few  from  excessive  and  superficial  reading.  These 
lines  of  work,  in  all  probability,  are  needed  everywhere 
in  the  interests  of  better  character  building. 


CHAPTER  VIII 

HOW  MAY  FATIGUE  IN  THE  SCHOOL-ROOM 
BE  REDUCED   TO   THE  MINIMUM? 

Mosso,  an  eminent  authority  on  fatigue,  states  that  he 
has  made  the  difficult  ascent  of  Mt.  Blanc  several  times, 
and  observed  the  sublime  scenery  that  greets  the  eye  of 
the  traveler,  but  that  he  can  remember  nothing  of  the 
magnificent  view  from  the  mountain's  summit,  because 
his  fatigue  so  greatly  lessened  his  mental  ability.  If  a 
well-trained,  mature  mind  like  Mosso's  fails  to  carry 
away  lasting  impressions  from  scenes  so  grand,  so  awe- 
inspiring,  so  profoundly  impressive,  so  powerfully  ap- 
pealing to  the  emotions  as  those  gained  from  Mt.  Blanc, 
because  fatigue  had  laid  its  numbing  hand  upon  his 
powers  of  observation  and  perception,  what  can  the  un- 
trained, immature  mind  of  the  child  be  expected  to  carry 
away  from  his  usually  dull  routine  of  daily  work  in  the 
school- room,  when  fatigue  has  laid  its  numbing  hand 
upon  his  weak  powers  of  observation  and  perception? 
Has  not  this  same  experience  of  Mosso's  been  paralleled 
in  the  instruction  of  even  bright  pupils,  and  teacher  and 
pupils  saddened  and  discouraged  because,  after  carefully 
and  laboriously  climbing  to  the  mountain  top  of  some 
difficult  topic,  from  which  a  glorious  view  could  be  caught, 
fatigue  so  dulled  the  powers  of  perception  that  practically 

nothing  of  permanent  value  was  carried  away?    Such 

89 


go  STUDIES   AND   OBSERVATIONS 

experiences  are  only  too  common,  and,  besides  being 
depressing,  leave  the  pupil  in  a  discouraged  frame  of 
mind,  with  confidence  in  self  shaken  and  with  less  desire 
to  make  the  ascent  again. 

May  this  not  be  the  explanation,  in  part  at  least,  why 
so  many  pupils  lose  interest  in  their  school  work,  develop 
a  positive  distaste  for  it,  fall  behind  in  their  work,  and  are 
classed  with  dullards,  so-called?  Surely,  the  normal 
mind  of  the  child  possesses  as  vigorous  an  appetite  for 
mental  pabulum  as  his  stomach  does  for  physical  pabulum. 
Why  do  so  many  turn  away  from  the  cuisine  of  the  school  ? 
The  fault  lies,  not  in  the  nature  of  the  child's  mind,  but 
in  the  way  and  in  the  time  in  which  it  is  served. 

CRY  OF  OVERWORK 

The  cry  of  overwork  in  bur  schools  is  frequently  heard. 
It  is  a  matter  of  supreme  moment  whether  or  not  our 
children  are  in  danger  of  over-pressure.  Fatigue  is  na- 
ture's kind  warning  against  over-pressure  and  over-ex- 
ertion. We  need  constantly  to  be  on  the  alert  to  discover 
whether  or  not  the  requirements  of  the  school-room  are 
too  heavy,  whether  the  hours  of  work  are  too  many, 
whether  the  study  periods  are  too  long,  whether  the  rest 
periods  are  too  infrequent,  whether  any  change  can  be 
made  by  which  the  maximum  mental  efficiency  can  be 
secured  with  a  minimum  expenditure  of  each  child's 
energy.  It  should  be  constantly  borne  in  mind  that 
what  a  child  accomplishes  or  masters  depends  not  so 
much  on  how  hard  or  how  long  he  works  as  it  does  upon 
the  fact  that  he  is  working  at  the  maximum  of  his  power. 
Ten  minutes  of  concentrated,  vigorous  effort,  when  the 
mind  is  fresh,  is  worth  ten  times  ten  minutes  of  dawdling 


IN    Till:    SCHOOL-ROOM  91 

whether  the  dawdling  be  caused  by  fatigue  or  laziness. 
Time  is  no  measure  of  progress  in  the  school-room. 

How  INCREASE  MENTAL  EFFICIENCY? 

Ribot  says:  "Fatigue  in  every  shape  is  fatal  to  mem- 
ory." Every  teacher,  therefore,  should  be  familiar  with 
the  indications  of  fatigue,  with  the  conditions  which 
most  rapidly  induce  it,  and  with  the  means  that  may  be 
employed  to  avoid,  to  reduce,  or  to  overcome  it,  so  that 
the  maximum  of  effort  may  be  attained  by  the  minimum 
expenditure  of  energy.  It  is  said  that  he  who  causes 
two  blades  of  grass  to  spring  up  where  only  one  was 
growing,  is  a  public  benefactor.  But  what  shall  we  term 
him  who  points  out  how  to  increase  mental  efficiency? 
\Yhut  honor  shall  we  bestow  upon  him  who  can  so  direct 
us  that  we  can  bring  down  with  us  the  glorious  views 
from  the  mountain  top,  rather  than  be  baffled  and  lose 
our  grip  upon  them  through  the  benumbing  effect  of 
fatigue  ? 

It  was  the  writer's  privilege,  more  than  eight  years 
ago,  to  state  before  the  Department  of  Superintendence 
of  the  National  Educational  Association,  that  fatigue 
furnished  "  important  indications,  which,  if  carefully 
studied,  will  give  the  right  ordering  of  the  daily  work 
of  the  school- room  and  secure  the  largest  degree  of  men- 
tal efficiency  with  the  least  loss  of  the  child's  energy. 
This  problem  has  not  yet  been  fully  worked  out,  and 
we  should  earnestly  address  ourselves  to  its  solution." 
It  may  be  said,  after  the  lapse  of  more  than  eight  years, 
that  this  problem  has  not  yet  been  fully  worked  out, 
although  progress  has  been  made. 


02  STUDIES  AND  OBSERVATIONS 

EFFECTS  OF  FATIGUE 

Dr.  Hodge  has  demonstrated  that  brain-work  exhausts 
the  nerve  cells,  causing  them  to  shrink,  and  that  rest  is 
needed  for  their  recovery.  Mosso  concludes  that  such 
exhaustion  is  due,  in  great  part,  to  the  formation  of 
toxic  products  through  nervous  and  muscular  action. 
These  poisonous  products  distributed  by  the  blood, 
chiefly  induce  fatigue.  Severe  and  long- continued  activ- 
ity leads  to  an  accumulation  of  poisonous  products  in 
the  blood.  These  cause  acidity  of  the  blood,  which  in 
turn  lends  a  temporary  acidity  to  the  disposition.  This 
irritability  is  one  of  the  familiar  signs  of  fatigue.  Other 
indications  are  wandering,  lusterless  eyes,  jaded  expres- 
sion, asymmetry  of  position,  twitching  of  muscles  of 
the  face  and  of  fingers,  weak  balance  of  hand,  abnormal 
color  of  skin,  frequency  of  errors,  and  lack  of  the  usual 
mental  grasp. 

How  REDUCED? 

But  how  may  fatigue  in  the  school-room  be  reduced 
to  the  minimum?  is  the  important  question.  We  con- 
cede in  our  question  that  it  cannot  be  entirely  overcome; 
that  we  must  reckon  with  it,  and  endeavor  to  reduce  it 
to  the  minimum,  where  it  will  clog  instruction  as  little 
as  possible. 

This  chapter  cannot  take  up  the  subject  of  good  health, 
nutritious  foods,  proper  exercise,  etc.,  although  each  of 
these  contributes  in  no  small  degree  to  that  fresh,  vigor- 
ous condition  of  mind  and  body  which  is  so  essential 
for  the  attainment  of  the  maximum  of  mental  efficiency. 
Nor  can  it  more  than  point  out  that  much  of  inattention, 
that  source  of  incalculable  loss  in  the  school-room,  is 


IN   THE   SCHOOL-ROOM  93 

often  due  to  overeating,  impoverishment,  vitiated  and 
ov  rheated  atmosphere,  misfits  in  desks,  and  many  other 
causes  whose  remedies  are  to  some  extent  within  the 
gnisp  of  the  teacher. 

MORE  FREQUENT  REST  PERIODS 

Our  psychologists  tell  us  that,  with  the  normal  pupil, 
mental  fatigue  from  school  work  is  quickly  induced  and 
also  quickly  passes  away.  Mental  efficiency,  or  the  in- 
crements of  skill  gained  through  mental  training,  is  much 
more  permanent  in  its  character,  and  is  not  soon  lost. 
If  this  be  true,  in  order  to  attain  the  highest  possible 
maximum  of  mental  efficiency,  with  the  greatest  economy 
of  effort,  provide  working  periods  with  more  frequent 
rest  periods,  and  thus  secure  through  this  power  of  the 
mind  to  recuperate  rapidly,  an  almost  continuous  high 
state  of  mental  vigor.  That  which  has  prevented  us  in 
the  past  from  injecting  more  freely  these  rest  periods 
into  the  work  periods,  has  been  the  fear  that  during 
such  interruptions  pupils  would  lose  all  the  advantage 
gained.  But  that  fear,  according  to  the  statement  of 
our  friends,  the  psychologists,  is  not  well  founded.  The 
mind,  instead  of  being,  as  we  supposed,  like  the  old- 
fashioned  sensitized  plate  of  the  photographer,  which 
required  a  long  exposture  is,  after  all,  more  like  the 
highly  sensitized  plate  of  the  snap-shot  camera.  Not 
long  exposure,  but  right  conditions,  such  as  proper  founda- 
tions, close  attention,  profound  .interest  —  these  deter- 
mine the  vividness  of  the  mental  picture,  its  permanency, 
and  the  degree  of  strength  gained.  We  need,  especially, 
in  the  lower  grades,  to  bring  in  these  more  frequent  rest 
or  exercise  periods,  believing  that  the  increments  of  power 


94  STUDIES   AND    OBSERVATIONS 

gained  from  mental  activity  will  not  be  dissipated  through 
such  slight  interruptions,  and  that  efficiency  of  public 
school  work  will  be  greatly  increased,  as  well  as  relieved 
of  much  of  its  present  drudgery. 

CONTRASTS  IN  PROGRAM 

Change  is  rest.  Presumably  the  psychological  ex- 
planation lies  in  the  fact  that  the  brain  has  various  sense 
centres,  to  which  are  referred  appropriate  stimuli.  Weari- 
ness, therefore,  in  the  sense  of  sight  can  be  partially 
relieved  by  exercises  which  appeal  largely  to  the  ear 
or  the  use  'of  the  hand.  The  daily  program  should  be 
so  arranged  as  to  bring  out  the  strongest  possible  con- 
trasts and,  for  the  lower  grades,  frequent  changes  in 
subjects.  Music,  drawing  and  physical  culture  should 
be  sandwiched  in  between  the  more  difficult  studies. 

BEST  WORKING  HOURS 

Not  simply  should  strong  contrasts  be  sought  in  ar- 
ranging the  daily  program,  but  there  should  be  careful 
study  made  so  as  to  arrange  subjects  with  reference  to 
the  hours  when  each  can  be  pursued  to  best  advantage. 
Professor  Seeley,  from  memory  tests  made  by  Dr.  Krohn, 
concludes  that  whatever  subject  is  taken  first  in  the 
morning,  the  average  retentive  power  of  -the  children 
reaches  eighty-nine  per  cent.  This,  therefore,  is  the  best 
working  period  of  the  day,  and  presumably  the  period 
for  arithmetic.  The  second  best  working  period  he  places 
from  three  to  four  in  the  afternoon,  and  with  history  as 
the  subject  finds  the  retentive  power  of  the  children  is 
only  three  per  cent  less  than  for  the  morning  hour.  Com- 
mon observation,  however,  will  scarcely  sustain  this  con- 


IN    THE    SCHOOL-ROOM  95 

elusion.  The  next  best  period  is  assigned  to  the  time 
from  one  to  two-thirty,  and  the  poorest  period  from 
eleven  to  twelve.  Under  the  best  possible  arrangement 
of  recitation  periods,  the  greatest  loss  at  any  one  period 
is  twenty-one  per  cent,  while  under  the  arrangement  of 
the  average  school  program,  the  loss  is  thirty-eight  per 
cent,  or  seventeen  per  cent  greater.  The  average  loss 
under  a  poorly  arranged  program  is  eleven  per  cent 
greater  than  under  the  best  arrangement.  Whether  we 
accept  these  results  as  strictly  accurate  or  not,  it  certainly 
remains  a  highly  important  fact  that  much  can  be  gained 
toward  relieving  the  fatigue  of  the  school-room  by  a  wise 
arrangement  of  the  daily  program  with  reference  to  con- 
trasts in  subjects,  and  their  best  adaptation  to  the  hours 
of  work. 

BETTER  HABITS  OF  STUDY 

Pupils  waste  an  enormous  amount  of  energy  in  their 
misguided  efforts  to  master  a  subject.  The  need  of 
training  pupils  how  to  study,  how  to  centre  every  energy 
upon  the  task  in  hand,  is  not  yet  sufficiently  appreciated 
by  teachers.  Tests  in  the  recitation  are  all  directed  to 
ascertaining  how  much  the  pupil  knows  of  the  subject, 
and  the  more  vital  process  of  how  he  gained  his  knowl- 
edge is  ignored.  /Studying  is  a  great  art,  and  its  mastery 
or  the  failure  to  master  it,  is  fraught  with  momentous 
consequences  to  the  pupil  ./The  re  are  those  right  be- 
ginnings which  lead  on  to  conscious  power  and  mastery, 
and  there  are  those  misguided  efforts  which  lead  to 
weariness  and  defeat.  The  teacher  of  to-day  must  be 
keen  enough  to  discover /vhat  bad  habits  of  study  are 
mocking  this  or  that  earnest  pupil, /and  making  his 


96  STUDIES   AND    OBSERVATIONS 

school  life  drudgery  instead  of  an  inspiration;  and  when 
discovered,  must  be  able  to  train  into  a  better  use  of  his 
mental  powers. 

WISER  UTILIZATION  OF  INTEREST 

The  study  of  interest  —  how  to  utilize  it  more  fully 
in  school  work  —  has  in  the  last  decade  banished  much 
of  the  weariness  and  drudgery  from  the  school-room, 
and  its  advantages  and  helpfulness  in  this  direction  are 
far  from  being  exhausted.  The  reason  why  interest  is 
such  an  important  factor  in  relieving  from  fatigue,  lies 
in  the  well-known  fact  that  the  greater  the  interest  in  a 
subject,  the  less  the  effort  of  will  to  hold  the  attention 
to  that  subject.  The  conscious  exercise  of  will  is  always 
fatiguing,  and  especially  so  when  the  subject  under  con- 
sideration is  distasteful.  The  potency  of  interest  in  re- 
lieving from  drudgery  lies  in  the.  fact  that,  even  con- 
cerning subjects  which  at  first  were  distasteful,  "We 
may,"  to  quote  the  Herbartians,  "  build  up  such  a  power- 
ful apperception  mass  that  any  fact  connected  with  that 
mass  will  at  once  attract  our  attention,  quite  irrespective 
of  our  will."  Under  the  wise  teacher's  management, 
therefore,  every  subject  in  the  school  curriculum  can 
eventually  be  included  within  the  charmed  circle  of  the 
pupil's  interests. 

GREAT  WASTE  OF  NERVOUS  ENERGY 

Why  is   fatigue   induced   so   much   sooner  when   the 
work  is   distasteful?    We   have   already  intimated   that 
it  is  due  to  the  greater  exercise  of  will  which  is  required . 
to  hold  the  wavering  attention.    But  it  seems  that  an- 


IN   THE   SCHOOL-ROOM  97 

other  characteristic  should  be  pointed  out.  Where  dis- 
taste exists  an  attitude  of  antagonism  springs  up.  This 
feeling  of  dislike  seeks  to  express  itself  in  some  outward 
form.  To  repress  it  requires  great  effort.  Although 
outwardly  the  pupil  may  seem  composed,  there  is  a  deep 
inward  struggle.  The  teacher,  unless  some  bodily  ex- 
pression be  given  it,  remains  ignorant  of  it,  and  is 
not  conscious  of  the  immense  expenditure  of  mental, 
even  physical,  energy  the  child  is  undergoing.  Let  me 
illustrate:  I  press  my  hand  against  one  of  the  walls  of 
this  room.  I  foolishly  fear  that  it  may  fall  upon  me 
and  crush  me.  I  press  with  all  my  might  against  it. 
Every  muscle  in  my  body  is  tense.  The  cold,  unfeeling 
wall  shows  no  sign  of  yielding,  but  resists  with  equal 
pressure  my  tense  muscles;  and  but  slight  evidence  goes 
fortli  that  I  am  in  such  an  intense  attitude  of  resistance. 
What  a  serious  mistake  to  conclude  that,  because  there 
is  but  little  motion,  there  is  therefore  no  intense  struggle 
going  on,  and  therefore  no  cause  for  weariness.  And 
so  in  the  school-room;  when  a  pupil  has  a  serious  dis- 
like for  a  subject  of  study,  or  for  the  uninteresting  manner 
of  presenting  it,  or  a  feeling  of  antagonism  has,  unfortu- 
nately, sprung  up  between  him  and  his  teacher,  what  a 
serious  mistake  to  conclude  that,  because  there  is  but 
little  outward  manifestation,  there  is  therefore  no  severe 
tension  or  cause  for  weariness.  These  dislikes,  these 
antagonisms,  these  undercurrents  of  feeling  sap  energies 
which  should  be  utilized  in  fruitful  school  work. 

LESSEN  NERVOUS  TENSION 

Education,  from  this  point  of  view,  is  to  direct  nervous 
energy  into  right  channels  and  to  keep  it  out  of  wrong 


98  STUDIES    AND    OBSERVATIONS 

ones.  In  every  idea  received,  there  is  a  tendency  toward 
motion  aroused,  which  expands  itself  either  in  nervous 
tension  or  action.  This  is  illustrated  in  mouth-watering 
when  something  luscious  is  seen,  or  in  mind-reading. 
The  child,  therefore,  is  to  be  regarded  as  a  sensitive 
being  in  which  nerve  currents  are  constantly  being  aroused 
both  by  external  and  internal  stimuli.  These  nerve  cur- 
rents may  or  may  not  be  under  control.  Some  may  be 
termed  friendly  and  some  hostile,  some  dominant  and 
some  defeated.  To  resist  a  terrifying  sound  may  waste 
more  energy  than  to  give  way  to  it.  To  prevent  fidget- 
iness may  be  more  exhausting  than  to  yield  to  it.  Fa- 
tigue and  worry  may  so  react  on  each  other  that  they 
become  an  endless  circle. 4/H.erc  is  where  the  skilled 
twentieth  century  teaches/with  her  superior  knowledge 
of  these  nervous  forces,  will  be  able  to  lessen  this  waste 
of  energy.] 

RECUPERATION    AS    WELL    AS    EDUCATION    THROUGH 

PLAY 

Play  furnishes  a  potent  means  for  reducing  to  a  mini- 
mum the  fatigue  of  the  school-room.  The  old  saying, 
"All  work  and  no  play  makes  Jack  a  dull  boy,"  con- 
tains an  important  pedagogical  truth.  There  is  nothing 
so  rapidly  recuperative  for  mental  fatigue  as  spontaneous 
activity;  and  yet,  on  the  other  hand,  there  is  nothing 
so  helpfully  educative  as  the  self -activity  engendered  in 
play.  That  which  has  been  most  beneficent  in  the 
present  modification  of  the  work  of  the  school-room  has 
been  the  introduction  of  the  play  idea  from  the  kinder- 
garten. Strange  that  it  was  not  introduced  sooner! 


IN   THE   SCHOOL-ROOM  99 

Every  idea  that  enters  a  boy's  mind  is  accompanied 
with  some  tendencies  to  motor  activity.  He  cannot 
think  of  a  ripe  watermelon  without  a  rush  of  saliva  to 
his  mouth  and  the  muscles  of  his  right  hand  becoming 
tense  with  the  desire  to  grasp  the  luscious  slice.  In  fact, 
he  has  not  thoroughly  grasped  any  idea  until  it  has  set 
every  possible  power  he  possesses,  both  of  mind  and  body, 
into  sympathetic  action.  He  must  be  free  to  learn  it 
all  over,  to  secure  for  himself  as  many  points  of  contact 
as  possible.  And  yet,  until  quite  recently,  Gray's  church- 
yard silence,  "When  all  the  air  a  solemn  stillness  holds," 
was  the  supreme  test  of  school- room  management.  What 
an  indictment  might  here  be  entered  against  the  strait- 
jacket  school  of  yesterday! 

Play,  according  to  Dr.  Fitz,  is  not  due  so  much  to  an 
overflow  of  animal  spirits,  to  a  superabundance  of  strength, 
as  held  by  Schiller  and  Spencer,  as  for  the  better  prepara- 
tion for  life  which  nature  designs  to  be  realized  through 
it.  To  quote  Dr.  Fitz: 

"Thus  youth  becomes  more  completely  an  appren- 
ticeship to  life,  with  play  as  the  master-workman.  In 
play  the  child  is  the  unit  of  force;  he  initiates  his  own 
conditions.  His  limitations  are  self-imposed.  His  self- 
control  lies  in  execution  rather  than  in  inhibition.  He 
is  concerned  with  self-expression  rather  than  with  self- 
repression.  Play  thus  relates  itself  to  the  truest  con- 
ception of  education,  the  development  of  power,  the 
power  of  the  individual  to  act  as  a  self-directed  unit  in 
civilization.  The  self-control  gained  by  play  acts  imme- 
diately, strongly,  and  honestly  in  response  to  conditions 
as  they  are  presented  in  life." 


f 

ioo  STUDIES   AND   OBSERVATIONS 

PHYSICAL  TRAINING  EXERCISES 

Some  schools  rely  upon  physical  training  exercises  to 
relieve  from  fatigue,  but,  while  it  may  be  admitted  that 
such  exercises  are  helpful,  they  do  not  afford  as  good 
opportunites  for  mental  recuperation  as  the  more  spon- 
taneous movement  in  the  outdoor  recess.  Physical  train- 
ing exercises  usually  require  close  attention,  and  much 
of  that  same  exercise  of  will  which  is  the  chief  cause  of 
school-room  fatigue.  The  movements  are  liable  to  be- 
come perfunctory,  lacking  the  spontaneity,  the  vital  in- 
terest, and,  in  consequence,  the  exhilaration  which  out- 
door play  gives,  and  which  is  the  best  tonic  for  rapid 
recovery  from  mental  fatigue. 

I  plead  guilty  to  the  charge  of  being  one  of  those  city 
superintendents  who  thought  it  wise,  because  of  the 
danger  from  excessive  exercise  and  exposure,  but  chiefly 
because  of  the  moral  contamination  possible  during  the 
outdoor  recess,  to  cut  off  such  recess  in  the  upper  grades; 
but  I  have  been  soundly  converted.  I  have  instructed 
my  teachers  to  return  to  the  outdoor  recess,  and  to  avoid 
its  former  excesses  and  moral  contaminations,  as  well 
as  securing  more  of  its  recuperative  and  educative  in- 
fluence, by  participating  freely  in,  and  in  part  super- 
vising, the  children's  games  on  the  school  ground.  I 
hold  that  its  educative  as  well  as  its  recuperative  and 
its  health  side  is  of  such  value  that  we  should  utilize  it 
as  an  important  factor  in  the  children's  education. 

CONCLUSIONS 

To  sum  up :  Fatigue  in  the  school-room  may  be  largely 
decreased,  if  not  reduced  to  the  minimum,  by  more  fre- 


IN   THE   SCHOOL-ROOM  101 

quent  use  of  rest  periods;  by  arranging  stronger  con- 
trasts in  the  daily  program,  as  well  as  securing  a  wiser 
adjustment  of  difficult  subjects  to  the  best  working  hours; 
by  patient  and  wise  training  of  pupils  into  better  habits 
of  study;  by  a  better  utilization  of  the  doctrine  of  in- 
terest; by  lessening  nervous  tension  in  the  school-room; 
and  by  wise  use  of  play  under  supervision. 


CHAPTER  IX 

A   STUDY   IN   MUSICAL   INTERPRETATION 

In  order  that  the  title  of  this  study  may  not  prove 
misleading,  it  should  be  stated  at  the  outset  that  this 
investigation  was  not  undertaken  primarily  in  the  in- 
terests of  musical  theory  or  practice,  nor  is  the  chapter 
written  from  the  standpoint  of  a  musical  critic.  Its 
chief  purposes  are  to  present  a  simple  investigation, 
made  in  an  average  high  school  with  an  average  high 
school  class  in  English,  in  regard  to  the  sensations  or 
emotions  aroused  by  music,  and  to  point  out  the  ad- 
vantages of  such  an  investigation  as  an  exercise  in 
English. 

It  was  believed  that  high  school  students  would  find 
the  attempt  to  portray  their  feelings  and  emotions  in 
carefully  chosen  words  a  rather  difficult  task,  and  be- 
cause of  the  careful  discrimination  desired  and  sought, 
it  would  prove  a  highly  stimulating  exercise  in  the  use 
of  good  English. 

It  was  also  hoped  that  such  an  investigation  would 
tend  to  lead  the  students  into  a  deeper  and  more  intelli- 
gent appreciation  of  that  which  was  best  in  music,  would 
tend  to  cultivate  in  them  a  deeper  love  for  the  beautiful, 
would  tend  to  enrich  their  emotional  life,  would  tend  to 
develop  the  habit  of  introspection,  and  thus  more  fully 
reveal  to  themselves  their  inner  life,  and  in  consequence, 
through  fuller  knowledge  of  self,  help  them  to  mould 

102 


IN  .THE  SCHOOL-ROOM  103 

and  shape  their  own  characters  more  wisely  and  con- 
sistently. 

PLAN  OF  INVESTIGATION 

The  exercise  was  given  to  a  first  year  high  school  class, 
numbering  seventy-one.  They  were  instructed  to  listen 
to  the  playing  of  three  selections  on  the  piano,  the  titles 
of  which  were  not  given  them,  make  notes  of  each  selec- 
tion as  to  what  they  would  regard  an  appropriate  title, 
its  general  character,  what  it  suggested,  and  what  feelings 
or  emotions  it  aroused.  Later,  as  an  English  exercise, 
they  were  to  write  out  their  impressions. 

The  selections  played  on  the  piano  for  that  purpose 
were,  first,  "The  Alpine  Storm,"  by  Kunkel,  second, 
"Cradle  Song,"  by  Heller,  and  "The  Harlequin,"  by 
Chaminade.  These,  as  the  titles  indicate,  are  widely 
different  in  character,  and  present  those  striking  musical 
contrasts  which  were  desired.  The  violence  of  the  storm 
in  the  first  selection  is  followed  in  the  second  by  the 
peaceful,  soothing  cradle  song,  which,  in  turn,  is  inter- 
rupted by  the  dancing  and  mad  pranks  of  the  clown. 

SELECTION  OF  TITLES 

An  examination  of  the  papers  disclosed  that  the  mem- 
bers of  the  class  interpreted  the  general  spirit  of  each 
selection  fairly  well.  As  might  be  readily  anticipated, 
the  wild  pranks  of  "The  Harlequin"  were  most  clearly 
set  forth,  and  therefore  best  understood,  and  appropriate 
titles  were  given  to  that  selection  by  sixty  out  of  sev- 
enty-one. 

The  dance  idea,  as  so  many  expressed  it,  made  itself 
felt  in  the  feet,  and  such  titles  as  the  French,  Spanish, 
Bohemian  and  Fairies'  Dance  were  given.  Some,  pre- 


104  STUDIES   AND    OBSERVATIONS 

sumably  not  so  familiar  with  the  dance  feeling,  or  not 
so  susceptible  to  its  seductive  influence,  named  the  selec- 
tion, "The  Race,"  or  "The  Circus." 

The  next  easiest  selection  to  interpret  was  "The  Alpine 
Storm."  Fifty-six  out  of  the  seventy-one  caught  the 
general  spirit  of  it.  In  a  few  instances  the  crash  of  the 
lightning  and  the  roll  of  the  thunder  were  mistaken  for 
the  clashing  of  musketry  and  the  roar  and  thunder  of 
artillery  in  battle  —  a  misinterpretation  easily  made. 
Under  this  impression  these  named  the  selection  "The 
Victory." 

As  was  anticipated,  that  which  proved  the  most  diffi- 
cult to  interpret  was  the  "Cradle  Song,"  presumably 
because  the  ideas  which  its  author  sought  to  convey 
were  not  so  well  marked  out  as  in  the  other  selections. 
To  meditate,  to  muse,  to  be  soothed,  to  hear  a  lullaby, 
is  to  open  the  heart  to  many  varying  emotions,  none 
of  which  is  characterized  by  anything  startling  or  strik- 
ing. Whether  we  are  soothed  or  saddened  by  the  lullaby 
depends  largely  upon  our  recent  experiences,  or  upon 
the  thoughts  which  have  been  recently  coursing  through 
our  minds. 

In  the  case  of  the  English  class,  the  titles  suggested 
by  the  playing  of  the  "Cradle  Song"  indicated  that  a 
much  wider  range  of  emotions  was  stirred.  The  titles 
suggested  as  appropriate  varied  from  "Spring"  to  "A 
Summer  Day,"  from  "Reverie"  to  "A  Funeral  March," 
and  from  "A  Shepherd's  Dream"  to  "Cathedral  Chimes." 

TYPICAL  PAPERS  SUBMITTED 

Out  of  the  seventy-one  papers  prepared  in  this  exer- 
cise in  English,  only  two  of  them  can  be  given  entire, 


IN   THE   SCHOOL-ROOM  105 

although  all  were  highly  interesting  and  worthy  of  care- 
ful study.  These  two  brief  papers,  the  first  written  by 
a  girl,  the  second  by  a  boy,  are  not  presented  because 
of  their  excellence,  but  because  they  are  typical  of  each 
sex  and  to  some  extent  manifest  the  contrasts  and  in- 
dividual traits  of  the  members  of  the  class.  Each  stu- 
dent selected  his  own  title  for  his  paper; 

"MUSICAL  MEANINGS  AND  SUGGESTIONS" 

"A  day  or  two  ago  I  heard  three  selections  played  on 
the  piano.  As  I  sat  listening,  I  found  myself  becoming 
wrapped  up  in  the  music,  and,  as  the  time  and  expres- 
sion changed,  my  thoughts  wandered  from  one  scene 
to  another. 

"I  have  studied  music  to  a  limited  degree,  but  knew 
neither  the  authors,  nor  (with  the  exception  of  the  first) 
the  names. 

"The  name  of  the  first  selection  was  "The  Alpine 
Storm."  To  me'  it  pictured  gloom  and  utter  darkness. 
There  seemed  to  be  great  despair,  and  near  the  close,  a 
strain  which  signified  a  sort  of  triumph.  In  some  places, 
excitement  and  animation  were  so  aroused,  that  not  only 
did  my  thoughts  wander,  but  my  whole  being  thrilled. 

"The  second  was  much  slower  than  the  first.  The 
character  was  sad  and  somewhat  weird,  and  the  spirit 
devotional.  At  intervals  through  the  piece,  a  tone  of 
uncertainty  could  be  heard,  and  the  last  note  left  the 
listener  in  suspense. 

"These  different  qualities  brought  to  my  mind  the 
thought  that  it  might  be  a  prayer.  Because  of  the  doubt 
expressed  in  the  piece,  I  named  it  'The  Wanderer's 
Supplication.' 


io6  STUDIES   AND    OBSERVATIONS 

"The  third  was  faster  than  the  first.  There  was  a 
sort  of  swing  to  the  time  that  made  me  want  to  dance. 
On  account  of  the  shortness  of  the  notes  and  rapidity 
with  which  they  were  played,  I  named  this  piece,  'The 
Scamper  of  the  Mice.' 

"It  is  wonderful  to  think  that  so  many  thoughts  can 
be  expressed  without  words;  perhaps  expressed  better 
than  with  them,  and  yet  how  few  of  us  ever  stop  to  realize 
the  true  meaning  of  the  music  we  hear." 

"OUR  CONCERT" 

"We  were  treated  to  a  little  concert  Monday  afternoon 
after  school. 

"There  were  just  three  numbers  in  all.  The  first 
started  out  in  a  sleepy  manner,  but  it  soon  livened  up, 
and  we  could  very  plainly  hear  the  roar  of  cannons, 
and  parts  of  bugle  calls,  which  could  faintly  be  heard 
over  the  din.  After  it  had  continued  for  some  time,  it 
suddenly  became  calm,  and  sounded  somewhat  like  a 
music  box,  when  it  suddenly  burst  forth  again  in  all  its 
fury,  and  that  was  the  end. 

"The  next  thing  I  knew,  they  had  begun  a  new  piece, 
and  it  was  all  that  I  could  do  to  keep  my  eyes  open,  as 
it  was  a  lullaby  of  some  sort,  and  a  sleepier  sensation  I 
never  felt. 

"But  if  I  did  nearly  go  to  sleep  during  the  second 
piece,  it  would  have  been  impossible  in  the  last.  It 
was  such  very  lively  dance  music  that  it  made  me  want 
to  get  up  and  gallop  around  the  room.  Luckily  for  me, 
just  before  I  started  on  my  wild  career,  the  music  stopped, 
so  suddenly  that  I  almost  fell  off  the  other  side  of  my 
seat. 


IX   THH    SCHOOL-ROOM  107 

"Xow  that  the  music  was  over,  I  began  to  wonder 
what  the  names  of  the  different  pieces  were,  as  we  had 
not  been  informed  on  that  subject.  As  I  could  not  find 
out  from  any  one,  I  decided  to  manufacture  some  titles 
for  myself,  which  I  did  with  the  following  result: 

"i.     'The  Battle.' 

"2.     'The  Lullaby.' 

"3.     'The  Hot  Ti'me  Gallop.' 

"These  arc  all  very  simple  names,  but,  nevertheless, 
the  names  by  which  I  shall  always  know  that  music." 

CONTRASTS 

A  comparison  of  these  two  papers  discloses  at  once 
to  the  teacher  the  maturer  views  of  the  girl  on  musical 
matters,  the  better  understanding  which  she  has  of  her 
inner  self,  and  the  choicer,  more  discriminating  language 
in  which  she  attempts  to  portray  her  own  feelings.  The 
boy,  although  older  in  years,  manifests  much  less  ac- 
quaintance with  the  realm  of  music  and  its  refining 
influence,  betrays  a  slight  acquaintance  with  his  crude 
emotional  life,  indicates  that  he  scarcely  knows  his  inner 
self  at  all,  and  rambles  and  stumbles  hither  and  thither 
in  his  awkward  attempts  to  clothe  his  feelings  and  emo- 
tions in  proper  English  dress. 

While  these  differences  in  ability  to  express  them- 
selves clearly,  would  no  doubt  appear  in  their  discussion 
of  any  subject,  yet  it  would  not  appear  in  so  marked  a 
manner  as  in  this  to  them  somewhat  mysterious  and 
undefined  realm  of  the  feelings,  to  which  music  so  subtly 
and  so  strongly  appeals. 

Is  it  not  true,  therefore,  that  no  more  profitable  field 


io8  STUDIES  AND   OBSERVATIONS 

for  training  in  the  discriminative  use  of  the  English  lan- 
guage can  be  found  anywhere,  than  in  such  an  exercise 
as  the  one  described?  Nowhere  else  within  the  sphere 
of  personal  experience  is  there  a  better  opportunity  for 
the  careful  weighing  of  words  than  in  this  attempt  to 
set  forth  their  deepest  emotions. 

KNOWLEDGE  OF  Music 

In  order  to  throw  a  little  more  light  on  this  study, 
through  a  better  acquaintance  with  the  musical  knowl- 
edge possessed  by  the  class,  they  were  asked  later  to 
answer  the  following  questions.  A  summary  of  their 
replies  is  also  given: 

1.  Do  you  play  any  musical  instrument? 
Forty  replied  yes,  and  thirty-one,  no. 

2.  Do  you  sing? 

Twenty-two  answered  in  the  affirmative  and  forty-nine 
in  the  negative. 

3.  Do  your  parents  sing  or  play  on  any  musical  in- 
strument ? 

Forty  said  yes,  and  thirty-one,  no. 

4.  When  listening  to  a  piece  of  music,  do  you  feel 
conscious  of  any  physical   sensations?     If  so,   describe 
them  briefly. 

Forty-eight  answered  in  the  affirmative  and  twenty- 
three  in  the  negative. 

SENSATIONS  AROUSED 

The  replies  to  question  four  as  to  the  character  of  the 
physical  sensations  were  as  follows: 


IN    THE   SCHOOL-ROOM  109 

Eight  students  stated,  "When  lively  music  is  played, 

I  want  to  get  up  and  dance." 

Six  replied,  "Cold  chills  go  up  and  down  my  back." 
Four,  "Always  feel  very  much  excited." 
Four,  "Want  to  keep  time  with  my  hands  and  feet." 
Three  state,  "I  feel  drowsy,  and  it  seems  as  if  I  could 

sit  there  forever." 
Three,  "Lively  music  makes  me  feel  lively,  and  music 

that  tells  something  horrible  makes  me  shudder." 

Two  replied,   "When  I  heard  the  'Alpine  Storm,'  I 

found  myself  quite  frightened." 

Two,  "Feel  nervous  when  listening  to  fast  music." 

Individual  experiences  ran  as  follows: 

"While  listening  to  some  'rag-time'  pieces,  I  feel  a 
creepy  sensation." 

"While  listening  to  classical  music,  my  muscles  con- 
tract, and  I  give  a  little  jerk  and  feel  a  tendency  to  draw 
nearer  the  instrument." 

"When  listening  to  'rag-time'  pieces,  I  am  always 
affected  in  my  feet." 

"Some  music  makes  my  muscles  twitch,  and  my  hands 
close  tightly  over  some  object." 

"When  a  piece  is  very  high,  it  sets  my  teeth  on 
edge." 

"If  listening  to  music  and  reading  at  the  same  time, 
the  characters  in  the  book  appear  more  real." 

"When  I  hear  band  music,  I  feel  like  I  would  like  to 
run  and  race,  and  let  out  my  feelings." 

"I  like  to  sit  and  think  of  great  things  I  might  do,  and 
lo  sit  and  dream  for  a  few  minutes  afterward." 


no  STUDIES   AND    OBSERVATIONS 

ENJOYMENT  OF  Music 

There  have  been  many  interesting  discussions  over  the 
question,  "Is  the  enjoyment  of  music  largely  of  a  physi- 
cal, intellectual,  or  emotional  nature?"  Why  does  a 
"concord  of  sweet  sounds"  give  us  a  high  degree  of 
pleasure?  Does  it  rouse  up  simply  delightful  physical 
sensations?  Is  it  largely  a  pleasurable  thrill  of  the 
nerves,  as  in  the  titillating  of  the  olfactory  nerves  by 
some  ambrosial  perfume  ?  Does  it  stimulate  the  imagina- 
tion and  thus  lift  us  into  an  ecstasy  of  enjoyment,  through 
the  enchanting  pictures  it  presents?  Are  these  pictures 
chiefly  sensual,  sensuous,  or  may  they  take  on  spiritual 
characteristics  ?  Does  music  arouse  a  spirit  of  exaltation 
and  call  forth  desires  for  a  purer,  nobler  life?  In  other 
words,  does  music  appeal  chiefly  to  the  physical,  intel- 
lectual or  spiritual  nature  of  man  ? 

Since  philosophers  have  not  been  able  to  agree  in  their 
answers  to  these  questions,  it  is  not  anticipated  that 
this  inquiry  will  disclose  satisfactory  answers.  This  in- 
ference seems  a  legitimate  one  to  make,  that  music 
arouses  and  intensities  such  feelings  or  emotions  as  char- 
acterize the  general  tenor  of  each  individual's  life,  but 
lifting  them  probably  to  a  higher  plane.  To  the  pure,  all 
things  are  pure;  to  the  sensual,  all  things  are  sensual. 

The  answers  of  these  high  school  boys  and  girls  in- 
dicate that  there  is  a  great  variety  of  feelings  and  emo- 
tions aroused  by  music.  These  feelings  and  emotions 
and  thoughts  are  highly  complex,  cover  a  wide  range, 
and  are  as  varied  as  the  experiences  through  which  each 
member  has  passed.  It  is  another  evidence  of  the  truth 
of  that  wonderful  saying  attributed  by  Tennyson  to 


IX   THE    SCHOOL-ROOM  in 

Ulysses,  4kl  am  a  part  of  all  that  I  have  met,"  or  to  use 
a  little  license,  "  All  that  I  have  met  is  a  part  of  me."  No 
two  human  beings,  therefore,  because  possessing  such 
widely  differing  apperceptive  material,  can  hear  alike, 
^an  be  moved  in  the  same  way. 

DOMINANCE  OF  PHYSICAL  SENSATIONS 

There  is  a  rather  surprising  dominance  of  the  physical 
sensations  among  the  members  of  the  class  tested,  as  over 
two- thirds  of  them  confess  to  such  experiences.  It  is 
anticipated,  however,  that  when  the  buoyancy  and  vigor 
of  youth  have  decreased,  and  the  soul  has  been  enriched 
by  the  larger  opportunities  and  more  serious  responsi- 
bilities of  later  life,  then  the  appeal  of  music  will  be  more 
largely  to  the  intellectual  and  spiritual  side. 

There  are  some  interesting  contrasts  experienced  in 
listening  to  the  music.  Some  wish  to  dance,  while  others 
feel  nervous.  Some  feel  their  muscles  twitching,  while 
others  are  in  a  happy  mood.  Some  are  thrilled  by  pa- 
triotic music,  and  are  eager  to  do  some  great  deed,  while 
others  wish  to  run  a  race.  Some  have  their  teeth  set  on 
edge,  while  others  are  lulled  into  a  dreamy  mood.  Some 
are  inclined  to  be  cross,  while  others  are  inspired  with 
romantic  ideas.  Some  shudder,  while  others  experience 
horripilation. 

Sufficient  instances  have  been  given  to  show  that  music  is 
a  wonderful  factor  in  arousing  varied  feelings,  thoughts 
and  emotions  in  the  soul,  and  that  its  enjoyment  is  prob- 
ably due  to  its  power  of  appeal,  not  simply  to  the  physical, 
but  to  the  intellectual  and  spiritual  as  well.  As  to  which 
of  these  will  dominate  a  listener,  can  only  be  determined 
by  that  particular  combination  of  material  and  spiritual 


ii2  STUDIES   AND   OBSERVATIONS 

elements   which  we  call  individuality,  coupled  with  his 
peculiar  mood  and  surroundings  when  listening. 

MUSICAL  IMPRESSIONS  HARD  TO  EXPRESS 

Forty-one  out  of  seventy-one  stated  that  they  found  it 
difficult  to  express  their  impressions  aroused  by  the  music. 
Six  declare  they  "Did  not  have  sufficient  command  of 
language." 

Three  stated,  "I  had  never  before  tried  to  write  on  a 
subject  with  which  I  was  not  familiar." 

Three,  "Didn't  understand  the  music  very  well." 
Two  said,  uMy  impressions  were  not  clear." 
Others  replied,  "Am  not  well  versed  in  English,  and  I 
know  so  little  about  music." 

"My  mind  was  taken  up  with  the  catchy  air." 
"The  sensation  which  comes  with  some  parts  of  music 
is  indescribable  —  it  is  a  sort  of  trance." 
"I  don't  know  what  my  impressions  were." 
"Music  makes  me  think  of  things  that  are  not  real." 
"My  impressions  were  in  such  a   tangled   condition 
that  it  was  almost  impossible  to  straighten  them  out." 

"Music  is  from  the  soul  and  the  different  impressions 
which  might  be  received  from  hearing  good  music  are 
hard  to  express." 

That  it  is  difficult  for  the  average  first  year  high  school 
boy  or  girl  to  set  forth  his  or  her  feelings  or  emotions,  is 
evident  from  the  two  papers  presented  entire,  as  well 
as  from  the  above  answers.  Even  with  the  adult  it  is 
true  that  his  feelings  are  often  expressed  with  difficulty, 
and  there  is  a  familiar  statement  that  our  emotions  are 
often  too  deep  for  words;  but  would  this  be  such  a  com- 
mon experience  if  we  did  not  neglect  to  cultivate  a  closer 


IX    THE    SCHOOL-ROOM  113 

acquaintance  with  our  inner  self  ?  Would  we  not  be  able, 
if  we  more  frequently  came  face  to  face  with  our  inner  self, 
to  cultivate  a  closer  acquaintance  with  these  emotions, 
vague  longings,  unconscious  yearnings  of  our  souls,  and 
thus  not  only  be  better  able  to  clothe  our  emotions  with 
words,  but  also  accomplish  that  which  is  of  much  greater 
value,  shape  our  own  characters  more  intelligently? 

Is  INTROSPECTION  DANGEROUS? 
But  some  one  may  suggest  that  the  habit  of  introspec- 
tion is  rather  a  dangerous  one  for  young  people  to  cul- 
tivate. It  may  induce  an  abnormal  condition,  an  ex- 
cessive self-consciousness,  a  condition  of  morbidness 
which  will  retard  wholesome  soul  growth.  It  should  not 
be  forgotten  that  every  vital  process  has  its  dangers.  The 
process  of  eating  is  vital,  yet  there  are  many  gourmands 
and,  in  consequence,  dyspeptics.  But  we  shall  wisely 
encourage  the  eating  of  food.  As  a  rule,  where  there 
are  great  possibilities,  there  are  also  great  dangers.  The 
cultivation  of  the  powers  of  the  imagination  is  dangerous 
to  certain  classes  of  young  people,  and  yet  an  educational 
system  that  did  not  provide  for  the  careful  training  of 
the  imagination,  that  power  that  can  make  the  humblest 
life  worth  living,  would  be  justly  open  to  the  severest 
criticism.  Introspection  is  generally  needed.  We  need 
to  bring  about,  in  the  average  high  school  student,  a 
better  acquaintance  with  his  inner  self,  and  such  a  study 
as  the  foregoing  can  be  made  one  of  the  helpful  means 
towards  the  accomplishment  of  this  end. 

CONCLUSION 

This  brief  and  somewhat  rambling  study  in  musical 
interpretation,  is  only  intended  to  be  suggestive.     It  can- 


H4  STUDIES   AND    OBSERVATIONS 

not  claim  to  be  conclusive.  Its  primary  purposes  are 
to  call  attention  to  the  sensations  or  emotions  aroused 
by  music  in  first  year  high  school  boys  and  girls,  and  to 
point  out  the  advantages  of  such  a  study  as  an  exercise 
in  the  discriminating  use  of  good  English. 

But  there  are  also  several  ulterior  purposes  sought. 
The  writer  believes  that  such  studies  as  these  will  tend 
to  develop  that  better  understanding  and  deeper  appreci- 
ation of  music,  which  means  increased  capacity  and 
ability  to  understand  and  appreciate  melody  in  note  of 
bird,  and  babble  of  brook,  an  increased  capacity  and 
ability  to  delight  in  beauty  of  form,  in  harmony  of  color 
and  in  symmetry  of  proportion  also. 

He  believes  also  that  the  habit  of  sane  introspection 
is  necessary,  in  order  to  a  right  understanding  of  the 
inner  life  and  self.  That  such  studies  tend  to  that  better 
acquaintance  with  the  inner,  the  real  self  —  an  acquaint- 
ance that  is  too  little  cultivated  in  our  bustling,  rushing, 
jostling  American  life  —  is  evident.  There  seems  to 
be  no  provision  made  in  our  intense  American  life  for 
reflection,  meditation,  for  the  individual  to  commune 
with  himself,  for  his  selfish  self  to  be  brought  face  to 
face  with  his  larger,  truer  self.  Here  are  opportunities 
of  directly  moulding  the  emotional,  mental  and  moral 
nature  of  our  boys  and  girls  that  have  not  yet  been  suffi- 
ciently utilized.  The  skillful  twentieth  century  teacher 
must  study,  will  study,  through  music  and  all  other 
legitimate  channels,  how  to  influence  in  a  greater  degree 
the  emotional  life  of  her  pupils,  and  by  such  means  will 
prove  more  successful  in  attaining  the  highest  end  in  all 
school-room  work,  the  building  of  right  character. 


CHAPTER   X 

ALERTNESS 
EXAMPLES  OF  ITS  LACK 

At  the  time  when  the  Cuban  War  was  in  progre*  s, 
it  was  the  writer's  privilege  one  day  to  be  one  of  a  gro\  p 
of  ladies  and  gentlemen  who  were  enjoying  a  good  dinn  *r 
at  one  of  the  leading  hotels  of  Washington.  In  the  group 
were  two  gentlemen,  one  a  goverment  officer  and  t'ie 
other  a  shrewd,  wealthy  banker  from  a  small  western 
town.  Both  these  men  were  efficient  and  capable  in 
their  respective  lines  of  work.  In  the  conversation, 
which  naturally  turned  upon  the  Cuban  War,  the  gov- 
ernment officer  used  the  word  "  Cuban,"  pronouncing  it 
as  if  spelled  "Cubian."  Another  of  the  party  used  the 
word  a  little  later  and  pronounced  it  correctly.  The 
government  officer's  ears  were  open,  however,  and  a  few 
moments  later  he  used  the  word  Cuban  and  pronounced 
it  correctly.  He  was  alert  to  utilize  information  as  it 
came  to  him. 

The  western  banker,  who  was  wide  awake  along  finan- 
cial lines,  and  quick  to  catch  hints  and  suggestions  in 
financial  matters,  was  obtuse  and  unobservant  of  the 
usual  customs  of  table  etiquette.  While  everyone  else 
at  that  table  was  a  worthy  exemplar  of  dining-room 
manners,  and  it  was  only  necessary  for  the  banker  quietly 
to  observe  and  imitate  those  about  him,  he  deliberately 

"5 


u6  STUDIES   AND    OBSERVATIONS 

set  his  pace  in  his  own  way,  ate  with  his  knife,  poured 
his  coffee  into  his  saucer,  etc.  And  yet  he  was  a  keen 
observer  in  financial  as  well  as  in  many  other  lines. 
Why  was  this  banker  so  obtuse  and  the  government 
officer  so  keen?  A  difference,  we  answer,  in  alertness. 

At  a  social  function  the  host  asked,  "What  goes  round 
a  buttin'?"  Some  said,  "A  button-hole,  of  course." 
When  the  host  replied,  "A  goat  goes  round  a  buttin','' 
a  prominent  business  man  said,  "Why  I  don't  see  that 
even  now,"  while  a  teacher  said,  "I  didn't  know  that 
goats  ate  buttons."  This  is  another  form  of  obtuseness 
or  lack  of  alertness. 

The  writer  had  occasion  to  buy  a  gas  stove  of  an  Eng- 
lish shop-keeper.  In  describing  the  virtues  of  the  stove, 
the  shop-keeper  said,  "The  gas  combines  with  the  hair 
and  makes  a  good  deal  of  'eat."  And  yet  that  man  was 
daily  surrounded  by  those  who  pronounced  English  cor- 
rectly and  they  were  constantly  sounding  it  in  his  ears, 
but  to  no  purpose.  This  is  a  very  common  form  of 
obtuseness,  but  it  is  singular,  nevertheless.  Why  should 
an  intelligent  human  being  be  so  impervious,  impene- 
trable, impermeable,  insusceptible  to  change,  to  im- 
provement? Why  are  the  corrupt  forms  of  speech  so 
persistent,  so  stable,  so  permanent,  while  the  pure  forms 
are  so  easily  corrupted?  Isn't  it  evident  that  watchful- 
ness everywhere,  alertness,  is  one  of  the  most  important 
traits  of  character  to  be  cultivated  ? 

It  is  said  that  over  ninety  per  cent  of  men  in  business 
fail.  They  start  out  with  high  hopes  of  success,  they 
devote  much  time  and  energy  in  their  efforts  to  succeed, 
but  over  ninety  per  cent  of  them  fail.  The  path  of  suc- 
cess in  every  profession  or  avocation  is  piled  high  on 


IN   THE   SCHOOL-ROOM  117 

both  sides  and  throughout  its  entire  length  with  countless 
wrecks  and  failures.  Why  so  many,  many  failures? 
One  prominent  cause  is  lack  of  alertness. 

WHAT  is  ALERTNESS? 

What  is  alertness?  What  is  this  characteristic^  which 
has  so  much  to  do  with  the  successes  and  failures  of 
life  and  whose  importance  can  scarcely  be  over-em- 
phasized? How  does  it  distinguish  its  fortunate  pos- 
sessor from  him  who  possesses  it  not? 

If  we  seek  the  answer  to  our  question,  "What  is  alert- 
ness?" in  the  origin,  or  literal  meaning  of  the  term, 
we  will  find  the  answer  exceedingly  interesting  and  sug- 
gestive. It  can  be  traced  through  several  languages  and 
is  everywhere  rich  in  its  suggestions.  Our  English 
authorities  characterize  it  as  quickness,  promptness, 
watchfulness,  vigilance.  If  it  be  traced  to  the  French 
language,  it  is  there  coined  into  alerte,  meaning  earlier, 
and  suggests  those  old  saws  about 

"Early  to  bed,  early  to  rise, 
Make  a  man  healthy,  wealthy  and  wise," 

and  the  early  bird  that  catches  the  worm. 

Alerte  also  can  be  traced  to  a  Verte,  meaning  "on  the 
watch,"  and  this  in  turn  to  the  Italian  air  erta,  with  the 
more  suggestive  significance  that  the  alert  person  is  stand- 
ing on  a  height  where  he  can  look  around  and  survey 
the  whole  situation.  Alertness,  therefore,  is  watchful- 
ness, vigilance  in  observing  closely  the  things  that  are 
occurring,  and  quickness,  promptness  in  seeing  their 
significance  and  intelligently  using  the  same.  He  that 
possesses  alertness  is  watchful  early  and  late,  and  is  as 


nS  STUDIES   AND    OBSERVATIONS 

one  standing  on  a  height  where  he  can  look  around, 
survey  the  whole  situation,  catch  every  helpful  sugges- 
tion, and  utilize  it  in  his  own  advancement  and  growth. 
This,  pre-eminently,  should  be  the  attitude  of  the  teacher. 
Alertness  is  an  essential  characteristic  of  every  successful 
teacher. 

CONTRAST  IN  ALERTNESS 

Take  two  familiar  types  of  teachers ;  the  one  we  will 
name  Miss  Jones,  the  other  Miss  Smith.  Both  of  them 
have  been  well-born  and  have  had  the  good  fortune  to 
have  been  brought  up  in  excellent  homes  —  such  an  im- 
portant factor  in  the  making  of  the  first  class  teacher. 
Both  were  graduated  from  the  same  high  school  and 
together  entered  the  same  normal  school.  Up  to  this 
time,  their  individual  characteristics  have  not  widely 
separated  them,  as  everything  has  been  carefully  planned 
for  them,  but  when  they  leave  home,  they  find  themselves 
thrown  more  upon  their  own  resources  and  then  more 
marked  characteristics  appear. 

Miss  Jones,  possessing  greater  alertness,  is  quick  to 
see  that  short  cuts  to  any  teaching  process  are  danger- 
ous, that  right  principles  must  underlie  permanently  suc- 
cessful practice,  that  principles  are  broadening  while 
methods  are  often  narrowing,  so  she  seeks  to  master 
principles.  When  a  method  is  presented  to  her  in  the 
normal  school,  she  does  not  rest  satisfied  until  she  has 
some  understanding  of  the  underlying  principles. 

Miss  Smith,  however,  because  of  less  alertness,  does 
not  stand  on  the  same  height  as  Miss  Jones,  and  fails 
to  take  in  that  larger  horizon.  She  sees  most  progress 
in  preparation  for  the  profession  of  teaching  through 


IN   THE   SCHOOL-ROOM  119 

the  thorough  mastery  of  the  details  of  method,  and  so 
devours  eagerly  every  method  set  before  her,  caring  little 
for  the  mastery  of  the  principles  which  should  underlie 
every  good  method.  She  wants  specific  directions  how 
to  teacH  each  subject,  so  that  she  may  conscientiously 
do  her  duty  and  not  trust  to  her  own  judgment  in  the 
working  out  of  details,  with  the  possible  shortcomings 
that  such  a  course  might  entail. 

And  here  is  just  where  her  reasoning,  or-  shall  we 
term  it  lack  of  alertness,  is  at  fault.  Without  granting 
herself  some  latitude  in  the  working  out  of  the  details 
of  a  recitation,  she  can  never  develop  in  herself  any  power 
of  initiative,  and  condemns  herself  to  the  monotony  of 
being  only  and  always  an  imitator. 

They  are  both  graduated  from  the  normal  school. 
Because  each  has  been  diligent  in  her  work,  and  eager 
to  succeed,  their  instructors  heartily  recommend  them, 
and  they  are  employed  in  the  same  system  of  schools. 
Miss  Smith  finds  ready  use  for  the  methods  whose  de- 
tails she  so  thoroughly  memorized.  While  her  teaching 
is  somewhat  mechanical,  yet  to  the  casual  observer  her 
promptness  and  air  of  assurance  are  pleasing.  She  never 
hesitates  because  in  doubt  what  to  do  next.  She  has 
the  fullest  confidence  in  the  methods  handed  down  to 
her  from  the  very  highest  authorities,  and  if  the  chil- 
dren's needs  are  not  exactly  met,  the  fault  must  lie  with 
the  children. 

Miss  Jones  is  not  so  ready  with  her  methods.  She 
takes  much  time  at  the  opening  of  her  school  to  study 
the  characteristics  of  each  pupil.  She  believes  that  only 
after  a  thorough  study  of  each  pupil's  needs  can  she 
give  them  the  training  they  ought  to  have.  Delays  occur 


120  STUDIES   AND    OBSERVATIONS 

which  are  annoying  to  her  and  her  pupils.  She  is  in  a 
state  of  stress  which  is  disquieting,  and  is  drawing  heavily 
upon  her  energy.  Were  the  superintendent  to  examine 
the  results  of  the  first  three  or  five  months'  work,  unless 
he  were  a  very  keen  observer,  he  would  probably  find 
more  evidences  of  progress  in  Miss  Smith's  room  than 
in  Miss  Jones'  room.  But  he  wisely  suspends  judg- 
ment until  results  can  be  more  definitely  known. 

As  the  months  go  by,  Miss  Smith's  pupils  manifest  a 
certain  readiness  and  glibness  on  the  lines  of  work  cov- 
ered. They  can  respond  with  surprising  promptness  to 
questions  calling  for  certain  memorized  facts,  but  to 
questions  of  comparison  between  these  facts,  to  ques- 
tions requiring  the  discovery  of  some  causal  relation 
between  those  facts,  they  fail  to  respond.  But  Miss 
Jones'  pupils  begin  to  show  evidences  of  power  which 
are  more  gratifying.  While  they  have  not  so  many  facts 
lodged  in  memory,  they  have  been  trained  to  make  use 
of  those  facts,  to  assimilate  them,  to  organize  them,  to 
classify  them,  to  discover  relations.  Miss  Jones  believes 
that  the  significance  of  a  fact  does  not  lie  in  the  fact  itself 
but  in  its  relations  to  other  facts.  A  few  facts  well  as- 
similated, well  organized,  are  worth  a  thousand  tossed 
heterogeneously  into  the  memory.  The  power  to  think 
logically,  the  power  of  initiative,  are  thus  gradually  yet 
surely  developed. 

ADVANTAGES  IN  SCHOOL  VISITATION 

One  day  the  superintendent,  believing  that  school 
visitation  has  in  it  great  possibilities  of  growth  for  the 
teacher  who  is  observing  and  alert,  sent  Miss  Smith  and 
Miss  Jones  to  visit  the  school- room  of  Miss  Brown,  who 


IN  THE   SCHOOL-ROOM  121 

was  regarded  as  an  average  teacher  in  the  corps.  Un- 
fortunately, it  was  an  "off  day"  for  Miss  Brown,  and 
not  everything  that  transpired  in  her  room  was  worthy 
of  commendation.  Her  usual  nervousness  was  increased 
by  the  entrance  of  Miss  Jones  and  Miss  Smith,  because 
she  feared  that  her  pupils  would  try  to  show  off  before 
her  visitors  in  the  various  annoying  ways  known  to 
pupils  under  such  circumstances.  Miss  Brown  was  con- 
ducting a  recitation  in  geography,  while  the  other  half  of 
the  pupils  were  supposed  to  be  engaged  in  the  prepara- 
tion of  a  language  lesson. 

Miss  Jones,  having  looked  forward  to  this  visiting  day 
with  much  anticipation,  and  having  thought  out  care- 
fully what  she  particularly  wished  to  see  and  investi- 
gate, first  glanced  around  the  room  to  see  wherein  this 
room  in  its  equipment  and  decorations  differed  from 
hers.  The  general  impression  made  upon  her  was  pleas- 
ing, and  she  thought  the  room  was  a  little  more  attrac- 
tive than  her  own.  She  sought  for  the  cause  of  that 
difference,  and  concluded  it  was  chiefly  due  to  an  in- 
expensive, yet  artistic,  mural  centrepiece,  and  she  quickly 
decided  she  would  have  some  such  decoration  for  the 
centre  of  her  school-room.  Miss  Smith  gave  a  casual 
glance  around  the  room  and  was  as  pleasantly  impressed 
with  its  general  appearance  as  her  companion,  but  it 
did  not  occur  to  her  to  seek  out  its  chief  cause  and  trans- 
fer the  suggestion  to  the  improvement  of  her  own  school- 
room. She  lacked  in  alertness. 

USE  OF  STUDY  PERIOD 

Miss  Jones  next  turned  her  attention  to  the  pupils 
who  were  preparing  their  language  lesson.  She  had 


123  STUDIES   AND   OBSERVATIONS 

been  led  to  the  conclusion  that,  since  the  self-activity 
of  the  pupil  is  the  only  process  by  which  he  can  educate 
himself,  training  into  right  habits  of  study  and  close 
application  in  the  preparation  of  the  lesson  are  the  best 
means  of  gauging  the  pupils'  progress.  She  noticed 
that  about  half  the  pupils  were  closely  engaged  in  study, 
while  the  others  were  dawdling  and  frittering  away  the 
time.  She  mentally  commented  over  the  great  loss  going 
on.  Only  half  the  possible  progress  being  made,  fifty 
per  cent  of  loss,  at  least.  What  a  tremendous  waste! 
But  worse  still,  those  dawdlers  were  unconsciously  training 
themselves  into  habits  which  would  severely  handicap 
them  all  through  the  balance  of  life's  race. 

Miss  Smith  also  noticed  the  use  made  of  the  study 
period  in  preparation  of  the  language  lesson,  but  as  the 
pupils  were  not  violating  any  of  the  commonly  accepted 
rules  governing  good  conduct,  she  concluded  that  the 
discipline  of  Miss  Brown's  room  was  fairly  good,  and 
that  there  were  no  important  suggestions  to  be  drawn 
from  it. 

USE  OF  RECITATION  PERIOD 

Miss  Jones  then  turned  her  attention  to  the  class  work 
in  geography.  All  the  pupils  seemed  attentive  and  deeply 
interested.  Miss  Brown  was  just  asking  the  class  the 
question,  "What  are  the  names  of  the  chief  rivers  of 
North  America?"  Charlie,  an  excitable  pupil,  wishing 
to  answer  the  question,  and  forgetting  in  his  eagerness 
what  had  so  often  been  told  him,  jumped  to  his  feet 
and  almost  frantically  waved  his  hand.  Miss  Brown 
was  chagrined  over  his  forgetfulness,  and  in  a  harsh 
tone  said,  "Sit  down,  Charlie,"  and  then  added  fretfully, 


IX   THE   SCHOOL-ROOM  123 

"Why  can't  you  remember  that  you  are  not  to  rise  until 
your  name  is  called?  I'm  ashamed  of  you." 

Miss  Jones,  appreciating  the  fact  that  Charlie  was  of 
a  nervous  and  highly  sensitive  temperament,  and  that 
his  eagerness  to  respond,  rather  than  any  spirit  of  dis- 
obedience, had  prompted  him,  promptly  reached  the 
conclusion  that  Miss  Brown  had  made  a  serious  mis- 
take. She  saw  from  Charlie's  flushed  face,  his  quiver- 
ing lips  and  the  aggrieved  look  in  his  eyes,  how  deeply 
Miss  Brown  had  wounded  him.  She  saw  also  that  Miss 
Brown,  through  such  inconsiderate,  unfriendly  criticism, 
was  helping  to  foster  a  spirit  of  antagonism,  not  simply 
in  the  mind  of  Charlie,  but  in  the  minds  of  many  of  the 
other  pupils  in  her  room.  The  sympathetic  atmosphere 
which  up  to  this  time  had  pervaded  the  room,  had  re- 
ceived a  severe  chill,  and  Miss  Jones  readily  perceived 
the  quarter  from  whence  the  chilling  blast  came. 

Miss  Smith  saw  in  this  affair  only  an  ordinary  school- 
room incident,  and  while  the  thought  flashed  through 
her  mind  that  perhaps  Miss  Brown  might  have  accom- 
plished more  with  Charlie  in  overcoming  his  fault,  by  a 
private  heart  to  heart  talk,  yet  he  deserved  pretty  severe 
treatment  for  his  offense.  The  barriers  which  were  rising 
between  teacher  and  pupils,  the  antagonisms  which  were 
being  aroused,  the  loosening  of  the  bonds  of  sympathy 
and  companionship,  the  chill  in  the  atmosphere,  all  these 
were  so  dimly  seen  or  so  vaguely  felt  by  Miss  Smith  that 
she  gained  no  valuable  lessons  from  them.  Miss  Smith 
was  not  alert. 

Miss  Jones  noted  also  the  character  of  Miss  Brown's 
question.  It  seemed  to  her  that  instead  of  asking,  "What 
are  the  names  of  the  chief  rivers  of  North  America?" 


T24  STUDIES   AND   OBSERVATIONS 

it  would  have  been  made  more  definite  and  valuable  if  she 
had  put  it,  "Name  and  locate  the  chief  rivers  of  North 
America."  The  name  of  a  river,  without  its  location  in- 
timately associated  with  it,  has  but  little  significance  or 
value.  Miss  Smith  was  wondering  whether  these  pupils 
would  reach  a  higher  average  standing  than  those  of 
her  own  room,  and  gave  no  thought  to  the  form  or  char- 
acter of  the  questions  asked. 

KIND  OF  LANGUAGE  WORK 

Later,  the  visitors  were  shown  some  of  the  results  of 
a  written  test  in  language.  The  papers  were  carefully 
gone  over  and  their  general  appearance,  which  was  neat, 
was  commended.  Some  questions  were  asked  as  to  the 
means  of  securing  good  penmanship,  and  pages  free 
from  blots,  which  brought  out  the  fact  that  eternal  vig- 
ilance is  the  price  of  neat,  legible  writing. 

In  further  examining  the  papers,  Miss  Jones  discov- 
ered three  instances  where  pupils  had  written  in  reply 
to  the  question,  "With  what  mark  should  every  ques- 
tion end?"  "Every  question  should  end  with  an  in- 
terrogation point."  In  the  next  answer,  and  in  plain 
sight  of  their  statement,  they  wrote  a  question  and  failed 
to  end  it  with  the  interrogation  point. 

Miss  Smith  was  only  amused  by  it,  when  her  attention 
was  called  to  this  inconsistency,  and  gave  the  matter  no 
further  thought,  but  Miss  Jones  pondered  over  it  in  this 
manner.  Here  was  a  case  of  sufficient  knowledge,  for 
these  children  had  answered  correctly  how  the  interro- 
gation point  should  be  used.  Their  knowledge  wasn't 
at  fault.  That  bit  of  knowledge  had  been  lodged  in 
their  minds  securely  and  accurately.  To  repeat  the 


IN   THE   SCHOOL-ROOM  .125 

statement  would  profit  them  nothing.  Iteration  and 
reiteration  of  words  would  simply  be  barren.  The 
fault  lay  in  the  failure  of  Miss  Brown  to  lead  those  pupils 
to  utilize  their  knowledge,  to  put  their  knowledge  into 
practice.  Acts,  not  words,  were  to  be  repeated  until 
they  had  become  habitual.  That  teaching  which  stops 
with  the  lodgment  in  memory  of  the  words  of  a  process, 
and  does  not,  through  persistent  practice,  transform  or 
translate  that  knowledge  into  habits,  conduct,  stops 
short  of  its  highest  fruition.  This  failure  to  repeat  not 
words  but  acts  until  they  become  familiar,  habitual,  is 
largely  responsible  for  the  lack  of  growth  and  efficiency 
which  characterizes  so  much  school-room  work. 

CONTRASTS  IN  RESULTS  GAINED 

Without  going  into  detail  concerning  other  incidents 
of  the  visit  to  Miss  Brown's  room,  is  it  not  quite  evident 
that  Miss  Jones  had  gained  immeasurably  more  from 
her  visit  than  Miss  Smith  ?  Robert  Browning  must  have 
had  the  Miss  Smiths  in  mind  when  he  wrote: 

"Oh,  if  we  draw  a  circle  premature, 

Heedless  of  far  gain, 
Greedy  for  quick  returns  of  profit,  sure 
Bad  is  our  bargain!" 

They  are  types  of  teachers  we  find  in  every  corps, 
both  earnest,  conscientious,  faithful,  desiring  to  make 
progress,  to  increase  in  efficiency  in  their  chosen  work, 
and  yet  from  the  visit  to  the  same  school-room,  seeing 
the  work  carried  on  at  the  same  time,  under  exactly  the 
same  conditions,  Miss  Jones  carries  away  with  her  those 
hints,  suggestions,  inspirations,  thoughts,  lessons,  which 


126  STUDIES   AND    OBSERVATIONS 

will  soon  place  her  far  in  advance  of  Miss  Smith.  Place 
them,  as  in  Miss  Brown's  school-room,  where  they  have 
the  same  opportunities  for  enrichment,  and  the  results 
are  so  widely  different.  Because  of  the  superior  alert- 
ness of  Miss  Jones,  she  will  gather  hints  and  ideas  at  all 
times  and  in  all  ways.  Her  growth  will  be  rapid  and 
continuous,  but  Miss  Smith,  unless  she  can  cultivate  a 
greater  degree  of  watchfulness,  unless  she  can  somehow 
mount  higher,  stand  on  a  height  where  she  can  survey 
the  whole  situation,  unless  she  can  cultivate  a  greater 
degree  of  alertness,  will  be  compelled  to  plod  on  through 
her  professional  life  in  the  ranks  of  the  imitators,  will  be 
denied  that  highest  enjoyment  which  arises  from  the 
consciousness  of  rapid  growth  and  increasing  efficiency, 
but  worst  of  all,  will  fail  in  exemplifying  before  her 
pupils  that  essential  quality  in  winning  success  —  alert- 
ness. 


CHAPTER   XI 

A  STUDY   IN  SPELLING 

The  public  schools  of  this  country  are  properly  re- 
garded as  the  greatest  factor  in  training  up  good  citi- 
zens. The  transforming  of  the  raw  material,  particu- 
larly that  which  comes  from  foreign  shores,  is  in  its 
results  marvelous.  No  other  institution  contributes  as 
much  to  the  stability  of  our  liberal  form  of  government 
as  does  our  public  school  system,  and  in  consequence, 
no  other  institution  lies  so  near  to  the  hearts  of  this  people. 

This  fact  will  probably  explain  why  the  results  achieved 
in  our  public  schools  are  so  often  subjected  to  severe 
and  sometimes  unreasonable  criticism.  Those  who  have 
been  watching  the  progress  of  our  public  schools  the  last 
twenty-five  years,  are  well  aware  that  periodical  waves 
of  criticism  sweep  the  country,  usually  taking  the  form 
of  antagonism  to  anything  new.  It  usually  tries  to 
arouse  serious  opposition  by  vigorously  shouting:  "Down 
with  the  fads."  "  Return  to  the  three  R's." 

Music  and  drawing  had  to  fight  their  way  into  the 
curriculum  against  this  noisy  opposition,  but  who  is 
there  left  now  who  seriously  urges  that  these  be  dropped 
from  the  school  curriculum?  These  have  demonstrated 
their  value  and  their  right  to  a  place  in  the  course  of 
study.  Our  critics,  however,  continue  to  be  active  and 
charge  periodically  that  writing  and  spelling  are  on  the 

decline.     They  make  the  broad  claim  that  the  pupils 

127 


128  STUDIES   AND   OBSERVATIONS 

to-day  are  not  as  well  trained  in  these  subjects,  parti- 
cularly in  spelling,  as  they  were  twenty-five  years  ago. 

PRESENT  SPELLING  CRITICISED 

Unfortunately  for  the  schools,  it  is  easy  to  make  such 
claims  and  to  secure  what  seems  to  be  substantial  evi- 
dence of  the  justness  of  such  claims.  There  has  never 
yet  been  a  school  without  a  certain  contingent  of  poor 
spellers.  In  a  matter  of  such  broad  comparisons,  where 
all  classes  of  children  are  included,  the  one  holding  the 
view  that  the  children  of  to-day  are  poorer  spellers  than 
those  of  the  generation  which  preceded  them,  is  looking 
in  the  direction  of  the  poor  spellers,  and  of  course  always 
finds  them,  for  the  poor  speller,  like  the  poor  in  general, 
we  have  always  with  us. 

Then,  too,  "distance  lends  enchantment"  to  the  good 
old  times,  when  we  of  the  preceding  generation  were 
boys  and  girls  together  in  school.  Our  severe  critics 
forget  that  there  were  poor  spellers  then,  as  now,  who 
could  perform  the  wonderful  feat  of  spelling  a  simple 
word  in  two  different  ways  in  the  same  paragraph,  and 
when  criticised  for  it  would  defend  themselves  on  the 
ground  of  possessing  greater  originality  than  "the  com- 
mon herd."  There  is  a  tradition  that  President  Andrew 
Jackson's  attention  was  once  called  to  one  of  his  state 
papers,  wherein  he  had  exercised  the  same  originality, 
but  it  only  provoked  from  him  the  rather  curt  retort, 
"I  wouldn't  give  a  continental  for  a  man  that  couldn't 
spell  a  word  more  than  one  way."  Without  doubt  origi- 
nality can  find  more  appropriate  and  helpful  channels 
in  which  to  express  itself  than  in  setting  up  a  dual  stand- 
ard in  spelling.  The  public  will  continue  to  regard  poor 


IN   THE   SCHOOL-ROOM  129 

spelling   as   one   of   the   evidences   of   poor   scholarship, 
Old  Hickory  to  the  contrary  notwithstanding. 

A  SPELLING  TEST 

Not  holding  the  opinion  that  the  school  children  of 
to-day  are  poorer  spellers  than  those  of  a  generation 
ago,  it  occurred  to  the  writer  that  a  wholesale  test  might 
be  made  in  the  schools  under  his  supervision,  of  all 
pupils  in  the  fourth,  fifth,  sixth,  seventh  and  eighth 
grades.  It  was  recognized  that  to  give  the  same  list 
to  the  fourth  grade  pupils,  whose  average  age  is  about 
ten,  as  to  the  eighth  grade  pupils,  whose  average  age  is 
about  fourteen,  would  be  a  rather  severe  test  for  the 
fourth  grade  pupils,  but  the  desire  to  have  the  same 
test  throughout  the  grades  outweighed  that  objection. 

The  list  of  one  hundred  words  selected  for  that  test 
was  also  used  in  several  other  schools  east  and  west, 
with  practically  the  same  averages  in%  the  different  grades. 
It  is  given  here  so  that  others  may  make  the  same  test 
and  have  some  basis  for  comparison  in  results.  The 
test  was  made  without  giving  the  pupils  opportunity 
for  any  preliminary  preparation  or  warning. 

LIST  OF  WORDS 

food  river  nerve 

•     beef  stream  wrist 

soup  pebble  blood 

fish  pond  breathing 

chicken  shore  healthy 

turkey  valley  exercise 

goose  mountain  clothing 

sheep  water  coat 

horse  ocean  bonnet 

house  boat  shoes 

school  steamer  vigorous 

scholar  passenger  arithmetic 


13°  STUDIES   AND   OBSERVATIONS 

studies  voyage  number 

useful  travel  column 

spade  journey  remainder 

shovel  noun  minuend 

rake  pronoun  multiplication 

garden  verb  addition 

lawn  preposition  subtraction 

grass  adjective  product 

robin  interjection  divisor 

sparrow  exclamation  measure 

blackbird  language  minute 

hawk  word  second 

flower  speech  month 

violet  voice  August 

rose  head  February 

dandelion  throat  century 

golden-rod  muscle  cocoon 

pink  finger  happiness 

lilac  lungs  helpfulness 

lily  joint  humane 

lake  eyes  successful 
island 

These  words  are  such  as  are  in  common  use  and 
therefore  constitute  a  fair  average  test. 

RESULTS  OF  TEST 

The  number  and  per  cent  tested  in  each  grade  were 
as  follows: 

Fourth,  six  hundred,  seventy-two  and  three-tenths  per 
cent;  fifth,  four  hundred  thirty-eight,  eighty-two  and 
five-tenths  per  cent;  sixth,  four  hundred  seventy- three, 
ninety  per  cent;  seventh,  two  hundred  eighty-six,  ninety- 
three  and  eight-tenths  per  cent;  eighth,  two  hundred 
thirty- three,  ninety-five  and  six-tenths  per  cent;  total, 
two  thousand  thirty,  eighty-four  and  four-tenths  per  cent. 

Eliminating  the  fourth  grade  pupils,  average  age  about 
ten,  the  remaining  one  thousand  four  hundred  thirty 
pupils  made  an  average  of  ninety  per  cent.  While  this 
does  not  indicate  a  very  high  degree  of  accuracy  in  spell- 


IX   THE   SCHOOL-ROOM  131 

ing  in  our  schools,  yet  there  is  every  reason  to  believe 
on  the  part  of  those  familiar  with  school  work  twenty- 
five  years  ago,  that  it  is  an  improvement  over  the  spelling 
of  those  days.  We  suspect  that  if  the  same  words  were 
written  by  any  average  two  thousand  admirers  of  the 
good  old  times  residing  in  our  western  cities,  the  per 
cent  of  misspelled  words  would  be  over  fifteen,  certainly 
over  ten. 

How  IMPROVE  THE  SPELLING 

Although  firmly  convinced  that  the  spelling  of  to-day 
is  better  than  that  of  twenty-five,  or  even  ten,  years  ago, 
yet  there  can  be  no  serious  difference  of  opinion  over 
the  desirability  of  making  even  more  rapid  improve- 
ment. The  subject  of  spelling  is  not  an  inspiring  one 
to  pupil  or  teacher.  Teachers  have  unfortunately  settled 
down  to  the  conviction  that  its  mastery  cannot  be  lifted 
out  of  the  field  of  drudgery.  Every  other  subject  has 
some  features  about  it  that  furnish  opportunities  for 
careful  thought  and  the  development  of  skill  in  the 
teaching  process,  except  spelling.  Every  other  subject 
brings  up  interesting  questions  as  to  the  right  mode  of 
procedure,  but  both  the  mode  of  study  by  the  pupils, 
as  well  as  the  conduct  of  the  recitation  in  spelling,  is 
monotonous  and  only  monotonous.  So  long  as  these 
depressing  ideas  generally  obtain,  so  long  will  it  be 
impossible  to  lift  up  this  subject  out  of  the  realm  of 
drudgery. 

What  are  the  best  means  of  improving  spelling?  is 
a  question  that  is  old  and  ever  recurring.  The  writer 
does  not  imagine  that  he  will  be  able  to  give  a  final  an- 
swer to  this  perplexing  question,  but  he  docs  entertain 


132  STUDIES   AND    OBSERVATIONS 

the  hope  that  he  may  throw  some  light  upon  the  solution 
of  it.  In  any  event,  he  hopes  that  his  attempt  may 
arouse  others  to  investigate  and  discuss  this  knotty 
problem. 

As  spelling  exercises  are  usually  conducted,  they  appeal 
to  three  kinds  of  memory:  memory  of  form  through 
the  eye,  memory  of  sounds  through  the  ear,  and  memory 
of  muscular  resistance  through  muscular  effort  in  writing. 
Under  the  latter  class  might  also  be  included  the  mus- 
cular effort  required  in  uttering  the  sounds  of  the  letters. 
Is  it  not  then  a  very  important  question  which  of  these 
three  kinds  of  memory  is  most  potent  or  tenacious? 
What  kind  of  appeals  produces  the  most  lasting  im- 
pressions? If  we  can  determine  that,  then  we  have 
made  some  progress  towards  solving  our  problem.  We 
will  then  plan  our  methods  of  study  and  of  the  recitation 
so  as  to  appeal  to  that  memory  sense  which  is  most  tena- 
cious or  efficacious  in  the  average  pupil,  and  thus  ensure 
a  greater  measure  of  success. 

Several  lines  of  investigation  were  pursued  by  the 
writer  with  reference  to  the  power  of  observation  and 
the  defmiteness  with  which  impressions  were  made  upon 
the  memory,  and  through  which  sense  the  more  lasting 
impressions  were  made,  the  eye  or  the  ear.  There  was 
no  particular  effort  made  to  compare  the  results  of  mem- 
ory from  muscular  resistance  with  results  obtained  through 
eye  and  car.  The  investigations  sought  rather  to  make 
a  comparative  study  of  these  two  senses. 

FIRST  INVESTIGATION 

For  the  first  investigation,  Professor  Ebbinghaus'  tests, 
in  modified  form,  were  used.  Three  tests  were  given: 


IX    Till:    SCHOOL-ROOM  133 

the  first,  an  car  or  auditory  test,  the  second,  an  eye  or 
visual  test,  the  third,  a  combination  of  ear  arid  eye  or 
audo-visual  test. 

The  auditory  test  was  made  by  slowly  and  distinctly 
naming  before  the  pupils  each  letter  of  such  meaning- 
less ten-letter  words  as  follows:  grynophisk,  etc.  Ten 
such  words  were  used,  none  of  which  were  seen  by  the 
pupils.  The  letters  were  pronounced  slowly  and  dis- 
tinctly and  at  the  close  of  each  word,  the  pupils  were 
requested  to  write  immediately  each  letter  named,  and 
in  the  order  named.  To  the  third  and  fourth  grades, 
the  letters  of  live  such  words  were  named,  and  to  the 
fifth,  sixth,  seventh  and  eighth  grades,  the  letters  of 
ten  such  words. 

For  the  visual  and  audp-visual  tests,  cards  were  printed 
in  large  enough  type  to  be  read  across  the  room,  and 
similar  meaningless  ten-letter  words  were  used.  For  the 
third  and  fourth .  grades  the  words  were  divided  by  a 
hyphen,  as  "halep-mirus,"  and  five  such  used.  In  the 
fifth,  sixth,  seventh  and  eighth  grades,  ten  such  words 
without  the  hyphen  were  used. 

In  the  visual  test,  each  card  was  held  up  before  the 
pupils  for  a  few  moments,  then  turned  down,  and  then 
the  command  given  to  write.  In  making  this  test,  it 
was  necessary  in  every  room  to  check  the  tendency  on 
the  part  of  pupils  to  whisper  to  themselves  the  letters 
at  which  they  were  looking.  This  was  planned  for  a 
visual  or  seeing  test,  unaided  by  any  of  the  other  senses, 
so  pupils  were  prohibited  from  using  their  lips.  In  spite 
of  all  the  cautions  given  them,  they  would  unconsciously 
give  way  to  this  evidently  strong  tendency  to  whisper 
the  letters  over  to  themselves. 


134  STUDIES   AND   OBSERVATIONS 

As  the  pupils  in  every  room  where  this  test  was  made 
gave  the  same  evidence  in  their  unsuccessful  attempts 
to  repress  the  strong  tendency  or  inclination  to  use  their 
lips,  some  interesting  questions  were  suggested.  Why 
did  the  pupils  so  generally  and  so  persistently  use  their 
lips?  There  was  no  evidence  of  wishing  to  be  annoying 
or  disobedient.  Practically  all  manifested  this  tendency. 
Shall  we  say  it  was  therefore  natural?  And  if  natural, 
should  it  be  suppressed?  If  natural,  doesn't  it  guar- 
antee that  that  is  just  what  the  pupils  should  do  to  help 
themselves  in  the  best  way?  Are  all  natural  tendencies 
helpful?  Do  they  unerringly  point  out  the  best  methods 
in  education  ?  Should  the  teacher  ever  disregard  or  work 
in  opposition  to  these  natural  tendencies?  Are  the  likes 
and  dislikes  of  children  safe  indications  or  guides  as  to 
what  should  or  should  not  enter  into  their  course  of 
training  ? 

We  are  not  ready  to  give  an  affirmative  reply  to  all 
these  questions.  Even  though  we  might  concede  that 
nature  usually  wisely  points  the  way,  and  that  we  should 
carefully  investigate .  her  leadings,  yet  another  question 
might  be  raised :  Are  all  these  common  likes  and  dislikes 
natural  ?  The  average  child  is  a  very  complex  combina- 
tion of  natural,  inherited  and  developed  tendencies. 
Who  shall  distinguish  the  natural  from  the  acquired 
tendencies?  But  we  are  ready  to  admit  that  this  ten- 
dency to  whisper  is  probably  nature's  plan  to  re-enforce 
the  impressions  of  sight  by  adding  those  of  sound. 

In  the  audo-visual  test,  the  appeal  was  made  to  both 
eye  and  ear  through  holding  each  card  in  sight  while 
pupils  named  each  letter  in  concert,  and  then  the  command 
was  given  to  write. 


IN  THE  SCHOOL-ROOM  135 

RESULTS 

Seven  hundred  forty-three  pupils  were  thus  tested  with 
the  following  results: 

In  the  auditory  test,  44.8  per  cent. 

In  the  visual  test,  66.2  per  cent. 

In  the  audo-visual  test,  73.7  per  cent. 

It  will  be  noticed  that  the  lowest  per  cent  of  the  letters 
recalled  was  by  the. auditory  test,  forty-four  and  eight- 
tenths  per  cent.  In  the  appeal  to  the  eye  alone,  the 
average  reached  sixty-six  and  two-tenths  per  cent,  or  an 
increase  of  twenty-one  and  four-tenths  per  cent.  In 
other  words,  twenty-one  and  four-tenths  per  cent  more 
letters  were  correctly  recalled  when  the  appeal  was  made 
alone  to  the  eye,  than  to  the  ear.  In  the  appeal  to  the 
eye  and  ear  combined,  the  audo-visual  test,  the  per  cent 
of  letters  recalled  was  seventy-three  and  seven-tenths,  or 
an  increase  of  seven  and  five-tenths  per  cent  over  the 
visual  test,  and  an  increase  of  twenty-eight  and  nine- 
tenths  per  cent  over  the  auditory  test.  In  other  words, 
seven  and  five-tenths  per  cent  more  letters  were  correctly 
recalled  when  the  appeal  was  made  to  the  eye  and  ear 
combined,  than  when  made  to  the  eye  alone,  and  twenty- 
eight  and  nine-tenths  per  cent  more  than  when  made  to 
the  ear  alone. 

ANOTHER  TEST 

Before  attempting  to  summarize  the  conclusions  to  which 
the  first  test  seemed  to  point,  another  test  was  undertaken 
along  a  somewhat  different  line,  anticipating  that  its 
results*  might  prove  corroborative  of  results  in  the  first. 

It  would  seem  that  accurate  observation  should  have 
some  bearing  upon  correct  spelling.  The  pupil  who  can 


136 


STUDIES   AND    OBSERVATIONS 


observe  a  number  of  objects  and  afterwards  name  them 
accurately,  ought  to  be  able  to  observe  the  letters  in  a 
word  and  also  name  them  accurately. 

Acting  on  this  suggestion,  ten  objects,  varying  in  size 
from  a  pair  of  shears  to  a  pen,  were  placed  in  a  box  and 
each  pupil  was  given  the  opportunity  of  looking  into  the 
box  for  a  few  moments  as  the  box  was  passed  by  an 
attendant.  Immediately  the  pupil  began  to  write  out 
the  list  of  objects  which  he  had  seen. 

The  test  was  made  in  fourth,  fifth,  sixth,  seventh,  and 
eighth  grades,  numbering  in  all  two  hundred  six  pupils. 
Each  grade  was  then  equally  divided  into  the  best  and 
poorest  spellers,  basing  the  division  ori  the  teacher's 
record,  and  a  comparison  made  between  these  divisions. 

COMPARISONS 
The  following  was  the  result: 


Grades 

Number 

Average 
standing  in 
spelling 

Average 
standing  in 
observation 

*Medium 
standing  in 
spelling 

Medium 
standing  in 
observation 

Fourth 

T  Best  spellers         20 
•<  Poorest  spellers   20 

92.9 
78.6 

48-5 
44 

95 
80 

50 
40 

(  Difference 

*4-3 

4-5 

15 

10 

C  Best  spellers        23 

86.8 

56.1 

85 

60 

Fifth 

-|  Poorest  spellers  23 

68.5 

48.3 

75 

5° 

(  Difference 

18.3 

10 

10 

(Best  spellers        30 

91.6 

59-5 

90 

60 

Sixth 

Poorest  spellers   29 

73-2 

54-8 

75 

5° 

Difference 

18.4 

4-7 

15 

10 

("Best  spellers         15 

91.1 

63-3 

90 

60 

Seventh 

-j  Poorest  spellers   15 

78.9 

56-7 

80 

5° 

(  Difference 

12.2 

5-6 

10 

10 

f  Best  spellers         16 

85-4 

60 

85 

60 

Eighth 

-j  Poorest  spellers   15 

74.1 

54-4 

75 

60 

(  Difference 

II.3 

5-6 

10 

. 

{Best  spellers         104 

89.8 

56.2 

89.1 

58.1 

Totals 

Poorest  spellers    102 

74.1 

52-2 

76.7 

49-5 

Difference 

T5-7 

4.0 

12.4 

8.6 

Medium  standing,  according  to  Dr.  Gilbert,  is  more  accurate  than  average  standing. 


IN   THE   SCHOOL-ROOM  137 

It  will  be  seen  from  the  foregoing  table,  that  the  results 
of  the  comparison  between  the  best  and  poorest  spellers 
in  their  powers  of  observation  arc  not  decisive,  yet  the 
fact  that  the  best  spellers,  averaging  twelve  and  four- 
tenths  per  cent  higher  in  their  spelling,  also  averaged 
eight  and  six-tenths  per  cent  higher  in  the  observation 
test,  furnishes  a  fair  basis  for  the  inference  that  there 
is  a  close  relation  between  accurate  observation  and 
correct  spelling. 

CAUSES  OF  POOR  SPELLING 

The  writer's  investigation  and  information  lead  him 
to  conclude  that  poor  spelling  is  largely  due  to  inability 
to  picture  the  word  correctly  and  promptly  in  the  "mind's 
eye,"  and  that  this  inability  is  largely  due  to  careless  or 
weak  observation.  Habits  of  inattention  or  lack  of  con- 
centration have  much  to  do  in  rendering  futile  the  poor 
speller's  efforts  at  mastery.  Defective  vision  is  often  a 
very  serious  handicap.  Because  a  pupil  docs  net  possess . 
normal  eyesight,  he  sees  imperfectly,  inaccurately;  the 
letters  in  the  word  and  their  right  order  are  not  taken 
in,  so  when  he  attempts  to  recall  the  word,  by  flashing  it 
before  his  "mind's  eye,"  the  picture  is  not  vivid  enough, 
is  incomplete,  and  he  becomes  confused  as  to  the  letters 
in  the  word  and  their  order. 

A  few  examples  of  actual  errors  perpetrated  by  fourth 
grade  pupils  are  here  submitted  as  illustrative  of  this  class. 

As  simple  a  word  as  "poetry"  was  distorted  or  tor- 
tured into  the  following  forms:  potty,  poeltry,  peotry, 
proty,  proity. 

A  little  fourth  grade  girl  wrote,  "I  am  very  bussy." 

A  boy  quoted: 


138  STUDIES   AND    OBSERVATIONS 

"Here  hath  been  dawning, 

Another  blew  day. 
Thing  with  them  let 
Spil  usless  away." 

Another  difficulty  presented,  is  the  erratic  use  of  let- 
lers  in  the  formation  of  English  words.  The  pronunci- 
ation of  a  word  usually  furnishes  but  little  clue  how 
to  spell  it  correctly.  The  frequent  use  of  silent  letters 
hopelessly  baffles  those  who  are  ear- minded.  A  few 
cases  in  point: 

A  fourth,  grade  boy,  quoting  a  line  from  "Woodman, 
Spare  That  Tree,"  wrote,  "Tuch  not  a  sinlge  bow." 
Another  spelled  "mezills"  for  "measles,"  "toon"  for 
"tune."  The  word  "vedshtobles,"  which  evidently 
stands  in  a  class  by  itself,  puzzled  the  teacher  for  some 
time,  but  she  finally  made  a  shrewd  guess  that  the  word 
vegetables  was  the  one  intended. 

That  inability  to  picture  the  word  correctly  and 
promptly  in  the  "mind's  eye,"  is  one  of  the  chief 
causes  of  poor  spelling,  seems  to  have  corroboration 
from  Superintendent  Parkinson  of  Amherst,  Massa- 
chusetts, who  made  an  investigation  of  the  difficulties 
in  teaching  spelling  to  the  blind  and  deaf.  He  reported 
after  hearing  from  a  limited  number  of  schools  devoted 
to  the  teaching  of  such  defectives,  that  the  superin- 
tendents were  almost  unanimous  in  stating  that  there 
is  serious  difficulty  in  teaching  the  blind  to  spell,  and 
but  little,  if  any  difficulty,  in  teaching  the  deaf  to  spell. 

CONCLUSIONS 

We  recognize  the  danger  of  hasty  generalizations  or 
conclusions,  but  it  would  seem  that  these  tests  warrant 


IN    THE   SCHOOL-ROOM  139 

the  conclusion  that  in  teaching  spelling,  the  appeal  to 
the  eye  is  productive  of  much  better  results  than  the 
appeal  to  the  ear.  The  average  child  retains  more  from 
visual  than  auditory  impressions.  He  is  at  present  more 
eye-minded  than  ear-minded.  It  is  therefore  safe  to  con- 
clude that  in  the  preparation  of  his  spelling  lesson,  we 
must  lead  him  to  appeal  as  strongly  as  possible  to  his 
sense  of  sight  and  develop  his  power  of  visualization. 

In  the  primary  grades  the  spelling  lesson  should  be 
studied  with  the  assistance  of  the  teacher'  at  the  black- 
board. Words  should  be  written,  shown  for  a  moment, 
and  then  erased  or  hidden  and  the  children  write.  This 
will  vividly  impress  form,  train  the  power  of  visualizing 
and  also  bring  in  the  aid  of  the  muscular  sense.  Visual- 
izing exercises  in  number  work  will  also  re-enforce  this 
work  in  spelling. 

Then,  too,  the  additional  appeal  to  ear,  in  having  the 
pupils  name  or  sound  into  their  own  ears  through  oral 
c'oncert  spelling,  will  aid  many.  This  has  its  dangers, 
as  all  concert  work  has,  of  drifting  into  a  lifeless,  im- 
pressionless,  follow-the-leader  style  of  exercise. 

Provision  should  also  be  made  in  all  grades  to  vary 
the  spelling  recitations  by  requiring  about  two-fifths  of 
them  to  be  given  orally,  with  syllabication  and  pronun- 
ciation of  syllables.  The  upper  grades  can  utilize  most 
of  the  suggestions  made  for  the  primary  grades,  and  in 
addition,  make  plans  by  which  they  can  best  impress 
the  form  of  the  word,  such  as  using  a  card  to  cover  up 
the  word  in  the  book,  after  carefully  looking  at  it,  and 
testing  their  mental  picture  of  it,  picking  out  and  em- 
phasizing the  part  of  the  word  usually  misspelled,  re- 
viewing at  regular  intervals  the  words  misspelled,  etc. 


i4o  STUDIES   AND    OBSERVATIONS 

Believing,  as  the  writer  does,  in  the  development  of 
eye-mindedness,  and  accurate  observation,  he  holds  that 
nature  study  is  tending  to  improve  our  spelling.  It  is 
not  too  much  to  expect  that  the  child  taught  to  observe 
carefully  and  describe  accurately  the  objects  of  nature, 
will  also  be  able  to  observe  carefully  and  describe  more 
accurately  than  now  (i.e.,  spell)  the  letters  in  a  word, 
and  thus  become  a  better  reader  and  speller. 

If  the  orthography  of  our  language  were  purely  phonic, 
then  the  appeal  should  be  made  chiefly  to  the  ear,  and 
oral  spelling  would  be  the  most  helpful  exercise,  but 
with  our  orthography  so  erratically  constituted,  we  must 
appeal  chiefly  to  the  eye,  and  through  it  to  the  picturing 
power,  and  plan  to  develop  the  power  of  accurate  word 
picturing. 


CHAPTER   XII 

QUESTIONS   OF  GRAMMAR   GRADE   PUPILS 
THOUGHT  READING 

There  are  whisperings  in  the  air  that  the  wizard  Edi- 
son is  engaged,  with  some  prospect  of  success,  in  devising 
a  machine  that  will  register  a  man's  thought  ere  he  has 
revealed  it  in  speech.  In  these  days  of  startling  inven- 
tions and  discoveries,  it  is  unwise  to  attempt  to  set  any 
limits  to  man's  achievements.  Edison  has  devised  so 
many  marvelous  mechanisms,  that  we  are  ready  to  be- 
lieve that  if  he  has  seriously  undertaken  this  difficult 
task,  he  will  eventually  accomplish  it. 

There  are  some  amusing  thoughts  that  the  possibility 
of  such  an  invention  suggests.  Our  thoughts  read  as 
they  are  flashing  through  our  minds  and  before  they  are 
given  utterance?  Where  would  our  secrets  be?  Where 
our  mental  protests  in  which  we  so  frequently  indulge 
ourselves?  How  could  the  pupil,  with  eye  studiously 
on  book,  conceal  his  mind-wandering  from  the  Argus- 
eyed  genius  of  the  school-room?  This  Argus-eyed 
teacher  could  then  study  mental  action  and  re- action 
in  the  same  manner  that  the  chemist  does  chemical  re- 
actions in  his  laboratory.  Merely  verbal  reactions  would 
no  longer  deceive  and  mislead  the  teacher.  What  a 
positive  science  pedagogy  would  then  become.  For  the 
present,  however,  we  must  get  at  those  thoughts  in  some 

less  direct  way, 

141 


142  STUDIES   AND    OBSERVATIONS 

It  is  a  well-known  fact  that  pupils  in  grammar  grades 
think  some  very  strange  thoughts,  and  indulge  at  times 
in  erratic  conduct.  They  are  experiencing  the  onset  of 
new  desires,  new  emotions,  arising  out  of  the  develop- 
ment of  the  sex  feeling.  Some  unwise,  or  at  least  strange, 
thinking  is  aroused.  The  vagaries  of  this  period  are  to 
be  treated  with  much  patience  and  consideration.  In 
the  minds  of  these  grammar  grade  pupils  are  springing 
up  some  longings,  some  capricious  ideas,  some  peculiar 
queries  which  seriously  disturb  their  ordinary  tenor  of 
thought  and  action,  but  unwise  reticence  on  these,  as 
well  as  on  other  important  questions,  is  their  usual  atti- 
tude, and  their  silence  is  often  interpreted  and  misunder- 
stood. Thought  reading  direct,  were  it  possible,  would 
aid  materially  in  a  better  understanding  of  these  gram- 
mar grade  pupils,  but  for  the  present  we  must  wait  for 
the  results  of  Mr.  Edison's  inventive  skill. 

AVENUE  FOR  PERPLEXING  QUESTIONS 
It  was  believed,  that  under  present  conditions,  a  better 
understanding  could  be  fostered  between  teachers  and 
pupils,  were  the  opportunity  afforded  the  latter  to  ask 
perplexing  questions  of  some  one  competent  to  answer. 
Under  the  guise  of  a  language  exercise,  such  questions, 
with  the  reasons  for  asking  them,  were  invited  from 
sixty  sixth  grade  pupils,  two  hundred  twenty-two  seventh, 
and  one  hundred  eighteen  eighth  grade  pupils,  or  four 
hundred  grammar  grade  pupils  in  all.  The  plan  adopted 
was  to  send  to  each  room  to  be  tested  the  following  notice : 

AN  EXERCISE  IN  THE  USE  OF  LANGUAGE 
Please  present  to  your  pupils,  as  a  test  in  the  use  of 
language,  the  following  exercise: 


IN    THE   SCHOOL-ROOM  143 

As  a  preliminary,  request  each  pupil  to  place  his  name, 
grade,  and  number  of  room  at  the  head  of  the  sheet  uscc1 

Place  the  following  question  on  the  board  and  requt: 
your  pupils  to  take  time  to  think  over  carefully  befoi 
committing  them  to  paper,  what  questions  they  would 
wish  to  ask  under  the  conditions  named. 

Question.  Suppose  you  had  the  opportunity  to  ask 
five  questions  of  some  one  who  knew  everything,  what 
five  questions  would  you  ask? 

State  after  each  question  your  chief  reason  for  asking  it. 

While  the  teachers  were  requested  to  treat  this  primarily 
as  a  language  exercise,  yet  they  were  also  informed  that 
the  exercise  had  a  deeper  purpose.  It  was  Roped  that 
some  of  the  pupils,  at  least,  would  disclose  some  of  the 
thoughts  and  questions  which  were  perplexing  them, 
and  thus  assist  in  giving  the  teachers  that  deeper  insight 
into  the  inner  life  of  each  pupil  which  is  so  essential  in 
planning  for  his  best  development.  The  motives  and 
interests  which  prompt  a  pupil  to  ask,  "Will  people 
become  more  skeptical  in  regard  to  God  and  religion  as 
time  goes  on?"  or  "Why  do  people  who  have  plenty  of 
money  spend  it  foolishly  when  they  could  be  doing  good 
with  it?"  are  very  different  from  those  which  prompt 
another  pupil  to  ask,  "Why  do  some  people  who  have 
enough  money  to  last  them  for  life,  work  hard  ?"  or  "How 
can  I  buy  and  sell  stock  so  that  I  will  never  lose?" 

Glimpses  were  given  of  widely  different  traits  of  char- 
acter, by  the  way  in  which  this  supposed  opportunity  to 
ask  questions  of  some  one  who  knew  everything  was 
treated.  One  was  profoundly  impressed  and  sought  to 
use  this  supreme  opportunity  by  presenting  the  weighti- 
est questions  which  have  confronted  him,  and  asked: 


144  STUDIES    AND  OBSERVATIONS 

"What  is  eternity?"  "What  is  the  most  important 
thing  to  accomplish  in  life?"  Another  manifested  sim- 
ply idle  curiosity,  and  inquired:  "Who  were  the  first 
people  who  made  up  manners  and  politeness  and  why 
did  they  make  such  funny  ones?"  "Who  named  the 
different  animals?"  And  another  failed  to  grasp  the 
thought  of  the  possibility  of  great  enrichment  and  flip- 
pantly asked:  "How  many  snow-flakes  fall  in  an  hour 
in  a  big  snow-storm?"  "How  many  pounds  will  all 
the  water  in  Lake  Superior  weigh?"  It  is  a  depressing 
fact  that  in  the  school-room,  as  elsewhere,  golden  oppor- 
tunities, supposed  and  real,  are  frittered  away. 

SUMMARY  OF  QUESTIONS 

In  the  main  the  questions  asked  and  their  reasons 
therefor  had  the  right  motives  behind  them,  had  the 
right  ring  to  them.  They  were  generally  sane  and 
wholesome.  It  was  anticipated  that  some  questions 
would  be  trifling,  but  it  can  be  said  that  out  of  nearly 
two  thousand  questions  asked,  only  a  few  were  of  a 
trifling  nature.  They  covered  a  wide  range  of  topics 
and  many  of  them  were  highly  interesting  and  sugges- 
tive, indicating  that  the  pupils  were  wide  awake  and  in 
touch  with  the  world's  doings.  A  somewhat  loose  classi- 
fication of  their  scope  is  presented  in  the  following: 


IN  THE  SCHOOL-ROOM 
TABULATION  OF  QUESTIONS 


Topics 

8th 
Grade 

7th 
Grade 

6th 
Grade 

Totals 

Civics 

53 

6l 

I 

JI5 

Current  Events 

40 

62 

22 

124 

Discoveries 

24 

22 

5 

51 

Education 

26 

8q 

12 

127 

Geography 
History 

14 
Q8 

216 

"5 

s 

295 
261 

Inventions 

71 

49 

7 

127 

Language  and  Literature 
Mining  and  Minerals 

16 
ii 

60 

54 

25 
23 

IOI 

88 

Miscellaneous 

28 

85 

J7 

130 

Natural  Science 

16 

8=; 

»3 

114 

Occupations 

10 

30 

6 

46 

Physiology 

9 

ii 

2 

22 

Religion 

23 

39 

7 

69 

Wars 

127 

116 

43 

286 

Totals 

566 

1094 

296 

iQ56 

Number  of  Pupils 

118 

222 

60 

400 

Nearly  half  the  questions  pertained  to  school  subjects, 
but  not  such  as  might  be  termed  text-book  questions. 
It  evidenced  the  fact  that  school  life  and  school  problems 
are  more  closely  allied  with  the  world's  experiences  out- 
side of  the  school-room  than  formerly.  The  school  life 
of  to-day  more  nearly  parallels  the  world's  life,  is  more 
vitally  linked  with  it,  than  ever  before,  much  to  the 
increased  profit  of  school  work.  This  vital  connection 
and  deep  interest  have  been  fostered  greatly  by  the  study 
of  current  events.  Nearly  every  progressive  school  to- 
day provides  for  the  utilization  of  current-events  material 
in  the  work  in  geography,  nature  study,  civics,  history, 
language,  through  the  introduction  into  the  school-room 
of  such  papers  as  The  Little  Chronicle,  The  Week's  Cur- 
rent, etc. 

Over  one-fifth  of  the  questions  were  along  current- 


t46  STUDIES  AND  OBSERVATIONS 

event  lines,  as  shown  in  the  table  under  Current  Events 
and  Wars.  A  separate  class  was  made  of  Wars  in  order 
to  ascertain  how  many  questions  were  asked  alone  about 
the  Russo-Japanese  War.  Practically  all  of  the  two 
hundred  eighty-six  questions  classed  under  Wars  were 
inquiries  concerning  the  results  of  the  Russo-Japanese 
War,  and  practically  all  were  in  deepest  sympathy  with 
the  plucky  Japs. 

Questions  pertaining  to  geography  came  second  in 
number.  Over  fifteen  per  cent  of  all  the  questions  were 
on  geographical  topics.  If  we  are  to  assume  that  the 
subject  that  called  forth  the  largest  number  of  questions, 
is  the  most  interesting  to  the  pupils,  then  geography  is 
the  most  interesting  among  school  subjects.  It  certainly 
is  a  thought  stimulating  subject,  as  the  number  and 
character  of  the  questions  concerning  it  give  evidence. 
Here  are  a  few  .of  them:  "Are  volcanoes  of  any  good?" 
"Why  is  the  earth  made  up  of  three-fourths  water  and 
one-fourth  land?"  "What  first  started  latitude  and 
longitude?" 

History  came  next  in  the  list,  inspiring  more  than 
thirteen  per  cent  of  all  the  questions.  These  ranged 
from  "Why  was  President  McKinley  assassinated?"  to 
"How  are  pictures  of  ancient  heroes  gotten?"  One 
pupil  seemed  inclined  to  discredit  the  foundations  of 
early  history  by  asking,  "What  do  people  know  what 
happened  hundredths  of  years  ago?" 

The  subjects  of  civics,  education,  inventions,  language 
and  literature,  and  natural  science  inspired  in  each  case 
about  the  same  number  of  questions.  Under  civics  were 
found  such  questions:  "Why  must  we  have  a  government 
and  why  must  we  obey  it?"  "Which  will  be  the  first 


IX   THE   SCHOOL-ROOM  147 

nation  to  change  its  form  of  government?"  Under  edu- 
cation, questions  like  these  were  asked:  "What  is  the 
most  important  branch  of  study?"  "Where  did  you 
(the  one  who  knows  everything)  receive  all  your  learn- 
ing?" In  inventions,  they  ran  as  follows:  "Will  Edison 
succeed  in  making  that  machine  to  read  thought?" 
"What  is  the  greatest  thing  ever  invented?"  In  lan- 
guage and  literature,  such  as  the  following  were  typical: 
"How  did  Webster  know  the  meaning  of  all  the  words 
in  the  English  language?"  "Who  found  out  first  the 
use  of  each  word  in  a  sentence?"  "What  good  books 
ought  we  to  read  and  what  ought  we  not  to  read?"  Un- 
der natural  science,  such  as  these  were  asked:  "Why  do 
apples  and  such  things  fall  instead  of  rise?"  "What  is 
thunder?"  "What  do  the  stars  look  like  near  by?" 

RESULTS  ATTAINED 

A  highly  interesting  and  profitable  language  exercise 
was  thus  afforded  the  pupils. 

Many  of  the  pupils  were  drawn  out  of  their  customary 
and  somewhat  monotonous  channels  of  school- room 
thought,  and  felt  something  of  the  inspiration  and  stimu- 
lation which  comes  from  utilizing  fresh  thought  material. 
They  were  intensely  interested  by  this  injection  of  fresh 
material  into  their  school  work,  and  excitedly  asked  each 
other  at  the  first  opportunity,  "What  questions  did  you 
ask?"  Both  teachers  and  pupils  caught  the  inspiration 
of  this  departure  from  the  too  frequent  humdrum  exer- 
cises of  the  school-room. 

The  deeper  interests  of  the  pupils,  those  not  usually 
called  forth  in  the  routine  work,  were  thus  revealed  to 
the  alert  teachers.  A  vein  of  seriousness  or  frivolity, 


148  STUDIES   AND   OBSERVATIONS 

not  suspected  before,  was  disclosed  in  some  cases.  For 
a  simple,  brief  language  exercise,  it  had  a  surprisingly 
stimulating  and  wholesome  effect  on  all  participating 
in  it. 

CHARACTERISTIC  QUESTIONS 

It  only  remains  to  give  some  of  the  characteristic 
questions  with  the  reasons  assigned  for  asking  them. 
For  convenience  in  studying  them,  they  are  grouped 
according  to  grades,  but  without  any  further  attempt 
at  classification.  A  careful  study  of  these  questions  and 
the  reasons  assigned,  will  prove  fertile  in  suggestions 
to  any  grammar  grade  teacher. 

(^4)     Sixth-Grade  Pupils  —  Average  Age,  13 
What  causes  the  rise  and  fall  of  the  tide?    This  was 
never  fully  explained  to  me." 

"Can  iron  wheels,  like  they  have  on  cars,  be  made  out 
of  paper?  A  boy  said  they  were,  and  I  did  not  know 
whether  to  believe  it." 

"How  did  they  divide  the  United  States  into  states? 
I  do  not  understand  how  they  can  tell  where  each  state 
ends." 

"Is  the  poem  of  'Evangeline'  true?  The  end  of  the 
poem  seems  as  though  it  might  not  be." 

"When  is  Decumpsy  (Tecumseh)  shares  going  up? 
I  have  some  shares  in  it." 

"What  am  I  going  to  be  when  I'm  out  in  life?  I 
want  to  know." 

"Why  did  we  have  this  test?  It  is  very  different  from 
the  others.' 

"How  many  cubic  feet  of  snow  fell  this  winter?  I 
don't  think  you  can  answer  it  without  finding  out." 


IX   THE  SCHOOL-ROOM  149 

"What  great  arthor  (author)  wrote  'Shakespeare'? 
It  is  a  beautiful  play  and  I  take  so  much  interest  in  it." 

"Why  did  Longfellow  write  '  Evangeline '  ?  I  did  not 
think  he  cared  for  a  love  story." 

"How  many  square  miles  are  there  in  all  the  world? 
I  want  to  see  if  you  knew." 

"How  did  you  come  to  know  everything?  I  would 
like  to  know  so  that  I  would  be  like  you." 

"What  are  the  names  of  all  the  people  in  all  the  cities 
in  the  United  States?  It  would  help  me  if  I  were  trav- 
eling." 

"If  you  bought  ten  million  dollars  worth  of  two-cent 
stamps,  how  many  times  would  you  go  around  the  world  ? 
Because  it  is  a  hard  example." 

"What  first  started  latitude  and  longitude?  I  have 
thought  and  thought  but  could  not  think  it  out." 

(B)  ^Seventh-Grade  Pupils —  Average  Age,  13.5. 

"How  many  snowflakes  fall  in  an  hour  in  a  big  snow- 
storm? I  think  it  would  be  very  wonderful  to  know." 

"In  the  coming  spring,  do  you  think  United  States 
could  win  from  England?  I  want  the  United  States 
to  win  so  that  it  may  be  so  left  alone  that  it  may  be  in 
piece." 

"Why  do  not  all  the  mines  let  all  the  men  have  a  day 
of  worship  on  Thanksgiving  Day?  This  has  been  on 
my  mind  for  the  last  two  Thanksgiving  Days,  for  the  men 
had  to  work  on  that  sacred  day.  I  think  it  is  very  wrong, 
for  did  not  the  proclamation  say  that  every  one  shoulcl 
be  without  work  and  worship  God?" 

"How  long  was  Joseph  in  prison?  I  want  to  know 
more  about  Jesus'  father." 


150  STUDIES   AND    OBSERVATIONS 

"How  was  the  earth  formed?  I  see  it  every  day  of 
my  life  and  do  not  know  how  it  was  formed." 

"How  did  our  ancestors  get  their  last  name  when  there 
was  no  one  who  had  their  name  before  them?  I  have 
often  thought  about  it  and  asked  people,  but  I  cannot 
find  out." 

"What  am  I  going  to  do  when  I  am  grown  up?  j.t 
would  be  nice  to  know  and  perhaps  we  would  be  more 
industrious  and  could  do  a  little  preparing  for  it." 

"What  is  going  on  in  my  body  every  day?  When  I 
am  sick  I  would  know  the  cause  and  would  be  more 
careful  what  I  eat  and  drink." 

"How  could  they  find  the  circumference  of  the  earth 
when  nobody  went  through  the  earth  to  measure  it?" 

"How  long  would  it  take  you  if  you  took  a  step-ladder 
and  climbed  to  the  sky,  and  how  far  is  it?  It  seems  so 
far  away  and  still  as  you  look  at  it,  it  seems  near." 

"Do  you  think  that  the  earth  is  really  round. and  that 
we  live  on  the  outside  of  the  globe?" 

"Why  do  people  think  there  is  a  north  pole?  If  there 
was  one  I  should  think  it  would  have  been  discovered 
before  this." 

"Why  does  President  Roosevelt  let  the  liquor  trade 
go  on?  I  think  it  is  spoiling  some  of  the  larger  cities. 
Roosevelt  could  stop  it." 

"Who  found  out  first  the  use  of  each  word  in  a  sentence ? 
I  study  grammar  every  day  and  use  the  words.  That 
person  must  have  been  pretty  smart  who  found  it  out." 

"When  will  children  stop  believing  there  is  a  Santa 
Claus?  Christmas  'will  not  be  of  much  fun  then  for  the 
people  or  the  children." 

"How  are  pictures  of  the  ancient  heroes  gotten?    I 


IN  THE  SCHOOL-ROOM  151 

don't  see  how  they  could  be  taken  when  they  had  no 
kodaks  or  cameras  in  those  days." 

"Why  are  all  the  large  bodies  of  water  bordering 
United  States?  Why  isn't  there  any  large  bodies  of 
water  in  the  centre  part  ?  " 

"Why  were  not  all  the  continents  together  in  one 
piece  of  land?  I  come  to  ask  it  because  it  is  funny  to 
be  scattered." 

"What  causes  the  sun  to  shine?  It  stays  bright  for 
a  thousand  years." 

"When  will  the  end  of  the  world  come?  Because  I 
am  afraid  of  my  life." 

"Why  does  the  United  States  want  to  build  the  Panama 
Canal?  Why  is  it  so  important?" 

"Why  do  some  of  the  states  have  such  curious  boun- 
daries? Because  I  am  curious  about  it." 

"Why  do  they  have  so  many  different  religions,  like 
Baptist,  Methodist,  Presbyterian  ?  I  don't  see  why  they 
don't  have  it  all  of  one  kind." 

"Is  a  Jew  a  Catholic  or  a  Protestant?  I  have  often 
wondered  about  it." 

"Are  heaven  and  spirit  around  us?  I  have  heard 
they  are  and  that  they  are  not.  I  wanted  to  know  if 
people's  souls  went  a  long  distance  or  not." 

"Why  doesn't  the  United  States  try  to  take  every  piece 
of  land  she  can,  like  Russia?  Russia  is  always  trying 
to  get  more  and  more." 

"Why  are  there  not  so  many  good  people  now  as  in 
the  time  when  Christ  lived?  People  don't  seem  to  care 
very  much.  They  go  to  church  every  Sunday  but  most 
of  them  are  not  much  better  for  it." 

"Did  Evangeline  live  so  very  long  after  she  met  Ga- 


i52  STUDIES   AND    OBSERVATIONS 

briel?  I  want  to  know  if  they  were  happy  again,  or  if 
they  both  died  broken-hearted." 

"Why  don't  territories  become  states  before  they  have 
a  population  of  two  thousand?  I  should  think  that  one 
thousand  people  could  take  care  of  all  the  land." 

"What  is  the  most  important  branch  of  study?  Be- 
cause it  has  often  been  quarreled  over  in  my  presence 
and  I  want  to  know  who  is  right." 

"  Where  did  Hiawatha  go  when  he  sailed  west  and 
what  became  of  him?  I  have  read  the  poem  over  and 
over  and  wondered  if  he  went  into  the  west  and  died." 

"What  is  outside  the  world?  I  wonder  what  holds 
the  world  up,  or  if  it  rests  on  anything?" 

"Why  did  they  have  the  Declaration  of  Independence? 
I  thought  the  people  were  free  before  it  came." 

"In  what  way  did  the  Egyptians  embalm  their  dead 
kings?  I  intend  to  be  an  undertaker  some  day  and 
want  to  know  about  it." 

"What  keeps  the  earth  from  having  a  collision  with 
some  other  body  flying  about  in  the  air?  I  don't  see 
why  we  don't  hit  the  moon." 

"Who  were  the  first  people  who  made  up  manners  and 
politeness  and  why  did  they  make  such  funny  ones  ?  I  often 
wonder  why  men  always  take  off  their  hats  to  ladies  and 
ladies  never  do  to  men.  I  always  thought  it  was  not  fair 
for  them  to  take  so  much  bother  and  the  ladies  not  to." 

"Where  do  vegetarians  live?  Because  United  States 
would  naturally  get  her  vegetables  from  there." 

"What  did  Evangeline  sail  up  the  river  for,  when  she 
knew  that  Gabriel  would  be  an  old  man  and  would  not 
marry  her?  I  don't  see  why  she  would  rather  sail  up 
the  river  than  go  with  anybody  else." 


IN   THE   SCHOOL-ROOM  153 

Seventh-Grade  Pupils  —  Average  Age,  14 

"Why  are  some  people's  hair  curly  and  other's 
straight?  The  negroes  hair  is  curly  and  Indian's  is 
straight.  Some  people  belonging  to  neither  race  have 
curly  and  some  straight." 

"Why  cannot  sugar  dibetous  be  cured?" 

"What  makes  the  world  revolve?  I  don't  see  how  it 
can  go  and  go  and  never  stop." 

"If  a  person  tried  to  discover  the  north  or  south  pole, 
how  could  he  tell  when  he  got  there  ?  I  don't  see  how 
he  knew  if  he  were  there  or  not.  There  must  be  some 
way  though." 

"Why  do  people  who  have  plenty  of  money  spend  it 
foolishly  when  they  could  be  doing  good  with  it?  How 
can  they  do  it  when  they  see  people  all  around  them 
suffering  and  dying  because  they  have  not  enough  money  ?  " 

"How  can  a  man  draw  the  picture  of  a  continent? 
They  cannot  tell  by  just  sailing  around  it." 

"Do  the  dead  know  anything?" 

"What  is  heaven  like?" 

"What  makes  the  air  look  blue  in  the  sky?" 

"Are  there  people  living  on  the  moon  and  stars?  I 
am  interested  in  air  ships  and  want  to  know  how  they 
got  there." 

"What  is  going  to  be  the  end  of  the  world,  if  there  is 
going  to  be  any,  and  who  are  going  to  be  the  explorers?" 

"When  two  countries  are  in  trouble,  why  don't  they 
dispute  the  matter  over  instead  of  going  to  war?  It 
would  save  the  loss  of  lives  and  would  not  damage  and 
destroy  buildings." 

"Japan  has  made  great  progress  in  civilization,  in  a 


154  STUDIES   AND    OBSERVATIONS 

few  years,  why  did  not  China  do  the  same?  China  had 
the  same  chance  and  yet  Japan  is  smaller  than  China." 

1  'What  country  was  found  first?" 

"What  good  are  post  offices?  Could  we  not  send 
letters  some  other  way?" 

"How  does  an  insurance  company  get  there  profit? 
Because  they  give  a  certain  amount  each  year  and  in 
ten  years  get  there  money  back,  if  the  person  doesn't 
die." 

(B)    Eighth-Grade  Pupils  —  Average  Age,  14.5 

"Is  it  right  to  make  war  on  other  countries?  This 
is  a  question  that  ought  to  be  decided." 

"Why  are  some  of  the  people  of  Africa  canables?" 

"Why  are  Jews  all  business  men?  I  have  never  seen 
one  that  worked  without  having  something  for  sale." 

"What  will  the  people  do  if  all  the  wood  and  coal 
should  give  out?  The  forests  in  Michigan  are  nearly 
gone." 

"Why  do  the  Pagans  not  believe  as  the  Christians  do? 
They  are  civilized  enough  to  understand  that  there  is  a 
God  but  why  don't  they  believe  as  we  do?" 

"Why  cannot  all  persons  study 'the  same?  Why  is  it 
that  one  person  can  study  better  than  another?" 

"Why  do  anarchists  assassinate  people  when  they  know 
they  are  sure  to  be  punished?  It  has  always  puzzled 
me." 

"Why  did  Roosevelt  receive  more  votes  thanMcKinley ? 
I  think  McKinley  Was  the  greater  man." 

"Do  you  think  the  time  will  ever  come  when  all  ques- 
tions will  be  settled  by  arbitration  and  armies  will  not  be 
needed?  Many  people  believe  it  will  come  true," 


IN   THE   SCHOOL-ROOM  155 

"Will  you  tell  me  how  to  become  as  wise  as  you  are  so 
I  will  know  everything  ?  Then  I  could  answer  any  ques- 
tion I  want  to  know  myself." 

"Will  it  be  possible  to  invent  a  machine  so  that  you 
can  see  the  person  to  whom  you  are  talking  through  the 
telephone?  I  have  heard  that  such  a  machine  is  being 
made." 

"Why  do  so  few  people  in  the  United  States  side  with 
the  Democratic  Party?  I  think  if  the  Democrats  were 
in  power  everything  would  be  much  lower  than  what 
they  are." 

"To  what  race  do  the  Finnish  people  belong?  I  am 
Finnish  myself." 

"Which  is  the  greater,  Edison  or  Shakespeare?  Be- 
cause one-  was  great  in  literature  and  one  in  electricity. 
Which  is  doing  the  most  good  in  the  world?" 

"Why  does  the  earth  revolve  from  west  to  east,  instead 
of  revolving  from  east  to  west?  It  seems  to  me  it  could 
go  that  way  as  well  as  the  other." 

"Can  the  dead  hold  communion  with  the  living? 
There  are  many  books  and  papers  written  on  that  sub- 
ject but  there  isn't  any  satisfaction  in  reading  them." 

"Where  do  people  go  when  they  die?  Some  think 
they  wander  about  the  earth,  but  are  invisible  to  men." 

"Why  do  the  Chinese  persist  in  wearing  a  cue?  No 
matter  where  they  are  one  cannot  persuade  them  to  cut 
it  off.  In  this  way  they  differ  from  the  Japanese.  Is 
it  a  custom,  a  religious  belief,  or  what  is  it?" 

"Don't  you  think  it  would  be  pleasant  to  carry  your 
fresh  air  around' in  your  pocket?" 

"Why  do  men  study  the  stars?  Because  they  are 
always  the  same  and  don't  make  any  difference  to  us." 


156  STUDIES   AND   OBSERVATIONS 

"How  am  I  going  to  leave  the  world?  Am  I  going  to 
be  in  debt,  a  cruel  man,  a  kind  man,  or  a  man  that  the 
people  will  mourn  for?" 

"How  can  copper  be  hardened?  Because  the  man 
that  finds  it  will  receive  one  million  dollars." 

"If  the  entire  circumference  is  25,000  miles,  what  is 
the  circumference  of  the  sky?  I  want  to  know  which 
is  the  larger  and  how  much?" 

"What  use  has  the  appendicitis  in  the  human  body? 
It  seems  to  cause  more  misery  than  good  to  mankind. 
I  have  asked  doctors  but  none  are  able  to  answer  the 
question." 

"Do  you  think  the  photography  of  the  mind  will  be 
a  success?  Teachers  could  tell  then  whether  we  were 
studying  or  not." 

(A)     Eighth-Grade  Pupils  —  Average  Age,  15 

"Will  the  plans  I  make  now  for  my  future  be  carried 
out?  If  I  knew  exactly  they  would  be  fulfilled,  I  would 
know  more  what  plans  I  want  to  make." 

"What  is  eternity?  The  more  I  think  of  it,  the  more 
I  become  mixed  up,  and  I  would  like  to  have  it  straight- 
ened out." 

"Has  the  United  States  reached  the  highest  point  of 
its  greatness  as  a  nation?  As  an  American  I  am  inter: 
ested  in  the  welfare  of  our  country." 

"What  will  the  air  ship  be  used  for?  It  is  a  great 
invention  but  has  no  definite  use  but  to  sail  around  in 
the  air." 

"How  can  people  draw  the  exact  shape  of  a  country? 
I  do  not  know  any  way  that  they  can  see  the  exact  shape 
and  locate  where  the  mountains  are,  etc." 


IN   THE   SCHOOL-ROOM  157 

"Will  people  become  more  skeptical  in  regard  to  God 
and  religion  as  time  goes  on?  They  seem  to  be  doing 
so  now." 

"What  is  the  shape  of  a  star?  What  are  the  stars 
made  for?" 

"Did  Shakespeare  or  Bacon  write  the  world's  famous 
plays  and  tragedies?  There  is  a  doubt  as  to  who  did 
write  them." 

"Do  you  think  that  the  United  States  will  ever  have 
another  war  with  England?  I  think  if  we  do,  that  she 
will  become  one  of  our  possessions." 


CHAPTER   XIII 

THE  SPIRIT   OF   CRITICISM 

Every  careful  observer  of  our  present  social  life  is 
impressed  with  the  growing  feeling  of  dissatisfaction 
with  the  present  order  of  things,  and  with  the  disposi- 
tion manifest  everywhere  of  indulging  freely  in  criticism. 
Did  this  simply  take  on  the  form  of  "divine  discontent" 
with  present  attainments,  and  intelligently  and  con- 
scientiously seek  the  means  by  which  higher  attainment 
might  be  achieved,  it  ought  to  be  hailed  by  everyone  as 
the  sure  harbinger  of  great  progress.  Unfortunately, 
however,  this  spirit  of  criticism,  when  directed  towards 
the  public  schools  —  and  this  is  the  field  we  wish  briefly 
to  discuss  —  is  too  frequently  devoid  of  the  character- 
istics of  helpfulness  and  an  honest  desire  to  improve 
educational  conditions. 

CRITICISM  RIFE 

Since  our  government  was  conceived  in  the  spirit  of 
protest  and  defiance  against  the  tyranny  of  Great  Britain, 
it  is  not  surprising  that  we,  in  later  years,  should  show 
signs  of  unduly  exalting  the  spirit  of  criticism.  Whether 
it  be  due  to  the  circumstances  which  surrounded  the 
birth  of  our  form  of  government,  whether  the  early  spirit 
of  criticism,  protest  and  denunciation  was  caught  and 
intensified  during  these  years  of  national  existence  and 
growth,  or  whether  it  sprang  up  later,  unduly  fostered  by 
158 


IN   THE  SCHOOL-ROOM  159 

the  spirit  of  our  free  institutions,  and  the  belief  that 
criticism  was  one  of  the  inalienable  rights  of  the  Ameri- 
can citizen,  it  is  not  the  province  of  this  chapter  to  de- 
termine. But  no  careful  student  of  our  present  social 
life  will  deny  that  there  has  not  been  developed  a  growing 
spirit  of  dissatisfaction  and  criticism.  Particularly  is  this 
true  with  reference  to  the  public  schools. 

The  teacher  is  frequently  reminded  of  that  familiar 
statement,  "Life  is  a  sec-saw/  Now  we  go  up,  up,  up, 
and  now  we  go  down,  down,  down."  The  average 
teacher  sees  so  many  inconsistencies,  is  climbing  over 
so  many  barriers  which  never  ought  to  be  placed  in  her 
way,  is  subjected  to  so  much  contradictory  but  usually 
adverse  criticism,  that  she  needs  to  pray  constantly  for 
grace  to  look  on  the  bright  side  and  to  keep  the  "ups" 
of  life's  see-saw  in  her  field  of  vision. 

CONTRASTS 

Note  the  contrasts  in  the  favorable  and  unfavorable 
criticisms  upon  the  teacher  and  her  work.  They  run 
something  after  this  fashion:  "There  is  a  surprising 
transformation  going  on  in  our  school-rooms,  which 
would  excite  the  greatest  admiration  and  wonder,  were 
it  not  so  familiar.  It  is  the  transformation  of  that  un- 
fortunate  class  of  pupils  whose  home  life  is  largely  made- 
up  of  parental  indifference  and  neglect." 

"Under  her  intelligent  and  sympathetic  guidance,  the 
unkempt  boy,  long  before  he  reaches  the  high  school 
becomes  neat  and  cleanly.  His  awkwardness  and  rude- 
ness have  disappeared.  He  walks  erect  with  a  manly 
air.  He  is  no  longer  vulgar  and  quarrelsome,  but  polite 
and  courteous.  His  intense  selfishness  has  been  modi- 


i6o  STUDIES   AND    OBSERVATIONS 

fied  by  the  wholesome  doctrine,  constantly  impressed 
upon  him,  that  others  in  the  school-room  have  rights, 
which  he  is  bound  to  respect.  In  addition,  he  begins  to 
have  glimpses  of  the  great  truth  that  selfishness  is  un- 
wise and  that  his  own  best  interests  are  best  conserved 
when  he  is  working  for  the  general  good.  Disobedience, 
therefore,  disappears;  hearty  co-operation  and  wise  self- 
direction  and  self- control  t  take  its  place.  It  is  not  an 
exaggerated  or  overdrawn  statement,  therefore,  that  the 
weal  or  woe,  not  only  of  such  neglected  children,  but 
also  the  weal  or  woe  of  the  commonwealth,  aye,  even 
that  of  the  nation  itself,  is  largely  committed  into  the 
hands  of  the  devoted  teachers  of  this  country." 

As  we  read  this,  we  feel  our  end  of  the  see-saw  rapidly 
rising,  and  we  are  possessed  with  an  exhilarating,  up- 
lifting, inspiring  sensation.  With  what  complacency  we 
view  the  world  in  general,  and  the  other  professions  in 
•particular.  What  an  honor  to  belong  to  the  profession 
that  is  chiefly  responsible  for  safe-guarding  and  main- 
taining our  nation's  priceless  liberties. 

During  our  delightful  indulgence  of  our  self-compla- 
cency, our  end  of  the  see-saw  has  risen  so  high,  that  we 
are  seriously  contemplating  a  permanent  position  on 
some  near  by  pedestal,  from  which  we  can  serenely  look 
down  upon  our  less  fortunate  workers  in  other  profes- 
sions. But  before  accomplishing  such  an  achievement, 
a  discordant  note  strikes  our  ears,  much  to  our  aston- 
ishment and  discomfiture.  We  fondly  imagined  we  were 
about  to  be  apotheosized,  but  instead  find  ourselves  in 
the  unhappy  situation  of  being  anathematized,  and  down, 
down  goes  our  end  of  the  see-saw. 

We  have  ample  time  to  philosophize  over  the  muta- 


IN   THE   SCHOOL-ROOM  161 

bility  of  human  affairs,  the  fickleness  of  public  opinion, 
and  the  wisdom  couched  in  that  old  saying,  "Let  him 
that  thinketh  he  standeth,  take  heed  lest  he  fall,"  as  we 
listen  to  the  following  utterances: 

"You  think  you  are  the  guardians  of  our  liberties. 
You  arrogate  to  yourselves  the  making  of  good,  intelli- 
gent citizens,  when  in  fact  you  are  putting  such  intoler- 
able burdens  upon  the  youth  of  our  land  that  you  arc 
ruining  the  health  of  countless  thousands  and  consigning 
them  to  premature  graves.  This  is  the  'Modern  Mur- 
der of  the  Innocents,'  and  a  National  Crime  with,  which 
you  teachers  are  charged." 

We  are  stunned  with  the  charge.  We  are  rudely 
jarred  with  the  terrific  shock  with  which  our  end  of  the 
see-saw  strikes  the  earth.  It's  a  long  distance  from  top 
of  pedestal  to  dusty  earth,  and  yet  we,  in  our  descent, 
broke  the  records  of  modern  rapid  transit.  Almost 
apotheosized  a  moment  ago  and  now  anathematized. 
Surely  "this  is  a  puzzlin'  world." 

When  our  scattered  wits  resume  their  usual  relations 
to  each  other,  we  begin  to  inquire,  "Why  should  we  be 
charged  with  such  an  awful  crime?  Are  we  not  most 
profoundly  interested  in  the  children's  well  being?  Do 
we  not  every  day  sacrifice  for  them?  Are  we  not  highly 
gratified  when  we  see  them  succeed?  And  are  we  not 
greatly  depressed  over  their  failures  and  shortcomings? 
Do  we  not  really  come  up  to  the  requirements  embodied 
in  that  legal  phrase,  defining  our  duties,  in  loco  parentis? 
How  then  are  we  open  to  such  a  monstrous  charge?" 

Do  our  harsh  critics  know  that  the  ills  that  child  life 
is  heir  to,  are  all  to  be  traced  back  to  the  school-room? 
Are  they  not  aware  that  our  average  school- room  is  far 


162  S'lmiKS   AND   OBSERVATIONS 

better  ventilated,  its  hygienic  conditions  far  superior  to 
the  average  home  from  which  the  school  children  come? 
But  they  charge  that  the  curriculum  is  overcrowded  and 
that  the  children's  health  is  ruined  by  overpressure. 
Who  overcrowded  the  curriculum,  if  such  be  the  case? 
Has  one  single  subject  been  placed  in  the  curriculum 
which  did  not  have  the  support  of  some  progressive  par- 
ents? Was  it  music?  Was  it  drawing?  Do  any  in- 
telligent parents  want  these  subjects  eliminated  from  the 
course  now? 

On  the  other  hand,  there  are  those  parents  who  say  that 
more  work  and  more  thorough  work  should  be  done.  It 
is  devoutly  to  be  hoped  that  those  who  charge  overpressure 
and  those  who  charge  underpressure,  will  in. the  near 
future  be  pitted  against  each  other,  and  instead  of  making 
life  a  burden  to  the  unfortunate  teacher,  may  enter  upon 
such  a  vigorous  contest  with  each  other,  as  will  result  in 
another  striking  illustration  of  the  beneficent  workings 
of  that  law  called,  "the  survival  of  the  fittest." 

After  such  reflections  as  the  foregoing,  which  disclose 
the  unfair  attitude  of  our  critics,  we  are  in  a  frame  of 
mind  to  long  for  a  rehabilitation  of  our  former  dig- 
nity. Our  end  of  the  see-saw  grows  firmer  under  us, 
and  manifests  some  tendencies  to  rise. 

And  now  come  some  grateful  sentiments  like  these: 
"Under  the  guidance  of  the  intelligent,  sympathetic  and 
devoted  teacher,  the  public  school  system  has  come  to 
be  the  main  hope  of  the  nation." 

"The  work  of  the  teacher  reaches  the  family,  exalts  the 
home,  pervades  society  with  its  ennobling  influences, 
strengthens  the  foundations  of  the  state  and  adds  to  the 
glory  and  magnificence  of  the  nation." 


IX   THE   SCHOOL-ROOM  163 

What  satisfying  music  to  our  hungry  ears!  Our  end 
of  the  see-saw  is  tilting  heavenward  again.  But  we  shall 
not  indulge  in  those  ecstatic  feelings  of  superiority  which 
were  ours  for  such  a  brief  period  when  we  were  nearly 
apotheosized.  Another  uplifting  sentiment  strikes  our 
ears.  "For  the  teacher  cannot  be  a  slave;  she  must 
think  and  act  for  herself.  On  her  depends  the  training 
of  the  children  of  a  free  people;  she  rocks  the  cradle  of 
the  State.  What  profession  is  so  noble,  so  sacred?  All 
honor  to  the  teacher." 

HONOR  AND  ADEQUATE  SALARY 
Now,  that  seems  to  have  the  right  ring  to  it.  Let 
your  imagination  take  wings  again,  and  see  the  teacher 
rescued  from  her  lowly  estate  and  occupying  her  lofty 
pedestal.  But  sober  second  thought  suggests  that  these 
may  be  only  the  .catchy  phrases  of  a  Fourth  of  July 
orator,  or  of  some  small  bore  politician,  who  does  not 
remember  that  about  nine-tenths  of  our  profession  are 
not  yet  enfranchised.  Somehow  when  we  reflect  over 
the  munificent  compensation  so  generously  bestowed  on 
the  members  of  our  "noble  and  sacred  profession,"  the 
foregoing  high  sounding  phrases  have  a  decidedly  hollow, 
empty  sound.  Where  is  the  substantial  evidence  that 
our  profession  is  so  noble  and  sacred? 

Let  us  again  quote  those  inspiring  words  of  praise:  "For 
the  teacher  cannot  be  a  slave" ;  on  thirty  dollars  a  month,* 
she  is  required  to  pay  her  own  bills.  But  it  must  be 
confessed  that  to  many  a  teacher  is  denied  the  glorious 
privilege  accorded  to  Longfellow's  village  blacksmith: 

"And  looks  the  whole  world  in  the  face, 
For  he  owes  not  any  man." 

*Thc  average  monthly  wage  in  the  Middle  West. 


164  STUDIES   AND   OBSERVATIONS 

Thus  hampered,  how  can  she  inspire  that  feeling  of 
independence  and  self-reliance  in  her  pupils  which  is  the 
glory  of  American  citizenship? 

To  quote  further:  "She  must  think  and  act  for  her- 
self." Yes,  and  incidentally  board,  clothe,  and  further 
educate  herself  on  thirty  dollars  a  month.  If  such  a 
situation  doesn't  lead  to  some  lively  thinking  and  acting, 
pray,  what  will?  Teachers  all  recognize  the  truth  of 
that  fundamental  doctrine,  that  development  comes  alone 
through  self-activity.  How  profoundly  grateful  we  ought 
to  be  that  every  feature  of  our  environment  has  been  so 
wisely  planned  to  arouse  our  self-activity  and  ensure 
for  ourselves  such  rapid  and  continued  growth  in  our 
profession,  "so  noble  and  so  sacred." 

Again,  "She  rocks  the  cradle  of  the  State."  This  is 
an  unfortunate  figure  of  speech,  well  meant,  no  doubt, 
but  misleading.  It  is  well  known  that  everybody  can 
rock  a  cradle,  because  everybody  was  subjected* to  the 
rocking  process  in  infancy.  The  simple  supposition  is 
that  each  child,  as  he  enters  the  realms  of  somnolency, 
keeps  one  eye  wide  open,  watching  the  rocking  process, 
for  fear  that  that  process  may  otherwise  become  a  lost 
art.  In  so  far  as  this  brilliant  figure  of  speech  suggests 
that  both  teaching  and  rocking  are  essential  to  the  per- 
petuity of  the  State,  it  may  be  tolerated,  but  when  it 
suggests  that  teaching  and  rocking  are  equally  simple 
operations,  and  that  any  one,  therefore,  can  teach  a 
primary  school,  we  are  compelled  to  caution  our  orator 
about  his  misleading  use  of  figures  of  speech. 

To  quote  one  more:  "What  profession  is  so  noble 
and  so  sacred?  All  honor  to  the  teacher!"  We  surely 
can  heartily  subscribe  to  this  peerless  peroration,  this 


OF  THE     ^ 

UNIVERSITY 

. 

I\    THE    SCHOOL-ROOM  105 

glorious  sentiment,  "All  honor  to  the  teacher,"  for  ha^e 
we  not  often  found  ourselves  at  the  end  of  the  year,  when 
we  struck  a  trial  balance,  in  this  situation,  all  honor  and 
but  little  else?  While  we  profoundly  appreciate  the 
honor  paid  our  profession,  yet  we  are  not  such  ethereal 
creatures  that  we  can  thrive  and  give  the  children  the 
strong  service  due  them  on  a  paltry  thirty  dollars  a  month 
and  all  honor  thrown  in.  After  reflecting  calmly  over 
our  orator's  catchy  phrases,  we  scarcely  know  whether 
to  regard  our  end  of  the  see-saw  as  up  or  down. 

Nothing  more  need  be  written  to  set  forth  the  fact 
that  criticism  is  in  the  air,  that  it  is  capricious  and  often 
captious;  yes,  even  at  times  unfair,  unjust  and  harmful. 
But  while  we  may,  at  times,  smart  under  it,  indulge  in 
some  righteous  indignation  against  it,  for  escape-valve 
purposes,  yet  in  the  main  we  ought  to  recognize  the 
helpful  side  of  it. 

SELF  CRITICISM  VALUABLE 

The  world  owes  Bobby  Burns  a  great  debt  for  having 
written  more  than  a  century  ago,  and  under  somewhat 
peculiar  circumstances,  the  following  wholesome  and 
helpful  lines: 

UO  wad  some. power  the  giftie  gie  us 
To  see  ourselves  as  ithers  see  us; 
'Twould  from  mony  a  blunder  frae  us 
An'  foolish  notion." 

Self-criticism  is  not  inspiring,  and  yet  it  is  the  most 
hopeful  indication  that  improvement  will  be  made.  That 
we  can  be-  led  to  sit  in  faithful  judgment  upon  ourselves, 
upon  our  shortcomings,  is  one  of  the  marks  of  true  great- 


1 66  STUDIES   AND    OBSERVATIONS 

ness.     It   marks   the   beginning   of   improvement   which 
promises  to  continue  through  time  and  eternity. 

To  develop  this  attitude  of  mind  in  her  pupils,  should 
be  the  foremost  aim  of  the  teacher.  Until  the  pupil 
becomes  somewhat  self  critical,  his  progress  cannot  prove 
satisfactory.  He  is  simply  the  creature  of. his  surround- 
ings. Let  him  once  squarely  face  the  fact  that  he  has 
power  to  direct  himself,  even  against  adverse  circum- 
stances, and  he  is  brought  face  to  face  with  another 
great  fact,  that  he  is  responsible  to  himself  for  what  he 
is,  what  he  does,  what  he  may  become.  Now,  he  notes 
his  own  language,  his  own  conduct,  whether  it  is  in 
accord  with  that  of  the  best  standards.  Eternity  alone 
can  reveal  the  distance  he  may  travel  along  this  line. 

Self-criticism  is  even  a  greater  factor  in  the  develop- 
ment of  the  teacher,  for  she  has  the  additional  reason 
to  travel  this  highway  of  improvement  that  she  may 
know  the  way  and  point  out  clearly  and  definitely  its 
advantages  to  her  pupils. 

It  is  to  be  regretted  that  parents  are  so  prone  to  criti- 
cise the  teacher.  Perhaps  they  hold  the  erroneous  opin- 
ion that  criticism  is  generally  wholesome  and  stimulating, 
and  m  like  a  patent  medicine  should  be  administered  on 
general  principles  for  the  cure  of  all  pedagogic  ills.  Per- 
haps they  vainly  imagine  that  their  constant  criticisms 
will  tend  to  foster  the  helpful  spirit  of  self-criticism  in 
the  teaching  profession,  but  they  should  remember  that 
individuals  and  professions,  like  nations,  drop  internal 
discussions  and  dissensions  and  present  a  united  front 
against  foreign  invasion.  Severe  criticism  from  without  is 
not  promotive  of  criticism  from  within.  It  is  not  the  most 
.stimulating  atmosphere  for  the  growth  of  self-criticism. 


IN  THE  SCHOOL-ROOM  167 

CO-OPERATION  NEEDED 

There  is  another  side  to  this  harsh  spirit  of  criticism, 
which  parents  seem  to  lose  sight  of,  and  it  is  chiefly  to 
call  attention  to  this  oversight  that  this  chapter  is  written. 
The  school  is  organized  for  the  chief  purpose  of  building 
up  right  character,  for  the  transformation  of  the  children 
into  honest,  obedient,  intelligent,  self-reliant  citizens. 
The  two  classes  most  profoundly  interested  in  the  success 
of  the  school,  in  the  progress  of  the  children,  are  parents 
and  teachers.  Both  parents  and  teachers  are  bound  to 
these  children  by  parental  ties,  the  former  by  birth,  the 
latter  by  legal  enactment,  to  co-operate  in  building  up 
right  character,  to  train  them  up  into  honest,  obedient, 
intelligent,  self-reliant  citizens.  Parents  have  charge  of 
more  than  two-thirds  of  the  waking  hours  of  their  chil- 
dren; '.he  teachers,  less  than  one-third.  Here  is  joint 
responsibility  in  accomplishing  this  wonderful  trans- 
formation. 

Who  are  interested  most  in  this  transforming  process? 
Will  any  one  say  that  the  teachers  are  less  loyal  and  de- 
voted to  the  children,  less  considerate  and  kind,  less  in- 
telligent and  thoughtful,  less  alive  to  their  grave  responsi- 
bilities than  the  parents?  In  their  school-room  work, 
are  they  not  more  alert  to  the  gentle,  subtle,  silent  in- 
fluences which  tend  to  mould  and  shape  character  than 
the  parents?  Is  not  the  average  school-room  of  to-day, 
from  this  point  of  view,  better  conducted  than  the  aver- 
age home?  The  teachers  of  the  twentieth  century  are 
alive  to  these  subtle  influences  which  mould  and  shape 
character.  They  have  been  studying  the  child,  his 
thoughts  and  feelings,  his  longings,  and  have  come  into 


i6S  STUDIES   AND    OBSERVATIONS 

very  close  touch  with  his  aspirations  and  his  emotional 
life.  Out  of  this  has  come  a  profound  sympathy  and 
patience  and  a  living  companionship  which  has  wonder- 
fully vitalized  the  work  of  the  school-room. 

The  typical  twentieth  century  teacher  realizes  that 
right  thinking,  right  feeling,  right  conduct,  cannot  be 
fostered  in  an  unsympathetic  atmosphere.  Interest  and 
enthusiasm,  and  sympathy  and  love  and  faith,  emanating 
from  the  genuine  teacher  and  filling  the  room  with  their 
stimulating  influence  and  inspiring  pupils  to  their  noblest 
efforts,  these  are  far  more  potent  to  mould  and  fashion 
character  than  rigid  discipline  and  formal  knowledge. 
uThe  letter  killeth,  but  the  spirit  giveth  life."  The 
twentiefh  century  teacher  is  exalting  the  things  of  the 
spirit. 

EFFECT  OF  HARSH  CRITICISM 

But  suddenly  a  harsh,  chilling  blast  of  criticism  thrusts 
itself  into  this  sympathetic,  stimulating  atmosphere  which 
the  teacher  has  inspired  in  her  school-room.  It  is  di- 
rected against  the  teacher.  It  chills  the  atmosphere  at 
once.  The  sunshine  has  gone  out  of  the  teacher's  face, 
for  the  criticism  is  undermining  the  confidence  and  faith 
which  her  pupils  entertained  towards  her.  With  face 
blanched  and  nerves  unstrung,  she  sees  the  shadows 
settling  over  her,  and  the  sunshine  departing  from  the 
faces  of  her  children.  How  can  she  do  her  work,  build 
right  character,  in  such  an  unsympathetic  atmosphere? 
What  has  so  rudely  disturbed  her  delightful  companion- 
ship with  her  children?  From  whence  has  come  this 
blighting  influence?  From  those  above  all  others  she 
had  a  right  to  expect  the  heartiest  and  fullest  co-opera- 


IN   THE   SCHOOL-ROOM  169 

tion  and  sympathy,  from  the  fathers  and  mothers  of  her 
children. 

Can  it  be  that  they  are  wholly  insensible  to  the  blight- 
ing influences  they  have  set  in  motion  ?  Why  should  they 
thus  thoughtlessly  or  maliciously  harass,  unnerve  and 
unfit  for  her  work  the  one  who  is  entitled  to  their  heartiest 
support,  both  for  the  relations  she  sustains  to  them 
under  the  law,  and  also  as  the  leader  and  companion 
of  their  children? 

From  a  cold  business  standpoint,  and  ignoring  entirely 
the  humane  point  of  view,  it  has  come  to  be  accepted 
generally,  that  to  subject  a  mechanic  to  harsh  criticism 
is  to  lessen  in  some  degree  the  efficiency  of  his  work. 
To  keep  him  in  a  state  of  nervous  tension  for  fear  he 
may  lose  his  job,  is  to  impair  the  quality  of  his  work. 
How  much  more,  then,  should  the  teacher,  who  deals  not 
with  soulless  tools  and  machinery,  but  with  tender,  sen- 
sitive, impressionable  minds,  with  delicate,  susceptible, 
immortal  souls,  be  shielded  from  harsh  criticism  and 
distracting  influences. 

The  teacher,  because  she  deals  with  the  things  of  the 
spirit,  because  she  must  enter  into  the  lives  of  her  pupils 
through  sympathy,  companionship  and  faith,  because 
she  must  build  up  self-reliance,  self-control,  mental  poise 
in  her  pupils  through  her  daily  exemplification  of  these 
and  other  elements  of  character,  should  be  freed,  as  far 
as  possible,  from  every  unnerving  influence. 

It  would  also  follow  that  Boards  of  Education  should 
free,  as  far  as  possible,  the  teacher  from  perplexing 
doubts  concerning  her  re-election  and  the  embarrass- 
ments 'and  annoyances  arising  from  an  inadequate 
salary. 


jyo  STUDIES   AND   OBSERVATIONS 

OUR  DUTY 

Possibly  the  writer's  rather  ironical  tone  at  times  may 
have  given  the  impression  that  he  is  inclined  to  look  at 
the  teaching  profession  through  pessimistic  spectacles. 
Not  so.  While  there  are  many  annoyances  in  the  teach- 
ing profession,  and  so  there  are  in  every  profession,  while 
these  annoyances  often  originate  among  those  who  should 
be  our  most  devoted  and  loyal  friends  and  helpers,  as 
in  the  case  of  so  much  harsh  criticism  on  the  part  of 
parents,  while  the  work  is  arduous  and  the  financial 
returns  meagre,  and  we  sometimes  worry  over  the  lack  of 
provision  for  a  rainy  day,  yet  the  world  is  slowly  mov- 
ing forward  to  a  higher  appreciation  of  the  devoted, 
intelligent  teacher's  work.  It  is  coming  to  believe  the 
truth  so  well  stated  by  a  friendly  critic:  "Under  guidance 
of  the  intelligent,  sympathetic  and  devoted  teacher,  the 
public  school  system  has  come  to  be  the  main  hope  of  the 
nation."  "The  work  of  the  teacher  reaches  the  family, 
exalts  the  home,  pervades  society  with  its  ennobling  influ- 
ences, strengthens  the  foundations  of  the  State  and  adds 
to  the  glory  and  magnificence  of  the  Nation." 

It  is  quite  evident,  therefore,  that  in  spite  of  adverse 
criticism  and  harassing  difficulties,  we  must,  in  the  lan- 
guage of  James  Whitcomb  Riley,  "keep  a  goin'." 

"If  you  strike  a  thorn  or  rose, 

Keep  a-goin' ! 
If  it  hails  or  if  it  snows, 

Keep  a-goin'! 

'Taint  no  use  to  sit  and  whine 
When  the  fish  ain't  on  your  line; 
Bait  your  hook  and  keep  on  trying 

Keep  a-goin'! 


IN   THE   SCHOOL-ROOM  171 

'When  the  weather  kills  your  crop, 

Keep  a-goin'! 
When  you  tumble  from  the  top, 

Keep  a-goin' ! 

S'pose  you're  out  o'  ever}'  dime, 
Gettin'  broke  ain't  any  crime; 
Tell  the  world  you're  feelin'  prime, 

Keep  a-goin'! 

'When  it  looks  like  all  is  up, 

Keep  a-goin'! 
Drain  the  sweetness  from  the  cup, 

Keep  a-goin'! 

See  the  wild  birds  on  the  wing, 
Hear  the  bells  that  sweetly  ring, 
When  you  feel  like  sighing  —  sing! 

Keep  a-goin' 1" 


CHAPTER  XIV 

OUTLINE  OF  A  MANUAL  TRAINING  COURSE 
MANUAL  TRAINING  RECOGNIZED 

Within  the  last  decade,  manual  training  has  success- 
fully fought  its  way  into  the  public  school  curriculum. 
Like  music,  drawing,  and  nature  study,  it  was  challenged 
to  show  cause  why  the  already  overcrowded  curriculum 
should  be  enriched  by  further  expansion  and  overload- 
ing. Strong  was  the  opposition,  severe  were  the  criti- 
cisms, vigorous  was  the  contest,  but  victory  perched  on 
its  banner,  and  manual  training  in  some  form  or  other 
is  now  recognized  in  the  curriculum  of  nearly  every  pro- 
gressive public  school.  The  time  has  therefore  passed 
when  it  is  necessary  to  discuss  its  advantages  and  claims 
to  recognition. 

DETAILS  OF  COURSE 

The  more  practical  question  is  now,  "What  shall  con- 
stitute the  best  course  in  manual  training?"  What  ex- 
ercises or  lines  of  work  shall  be  required?"  The  scope 
of  manual  training  is  so  broad,  its  possible  application 
so  unlimited,  that  to  mark  out  the  lines  of  work,  the 
exact  exercises  which  should  be  utilized,  is  an  exceedingly 
difficult  task. 

The  writer,  in  revising  the  manual  training  course  in 
his  own  system  of  schools,  at  Calumet,  Mich.,  entered 

into  a  wide  correspondence  with  different  schools  where 
172 


IN   THE   SCHOOL-ROOM  173 

manual  training  was  taught,  and  was  surprised  to  learn 
how  thoroughly  at  sea,  how  'unsettled  many  were  in 
regard  to  the  best  manual  training  course.  Courses 
were  largely  in  the  formative  stage.  But  few  features 
were  definitely  settled-  All  were  engaged  in  working 
out  something  more  satisfactory,  which  they  expected 
to  formulate  and  print,  as  soon  as  some  further  tests 
could  be  applied. 

In  working  out  this  revision  of  the  manual  training 
course  in  the  Calumet  schools,  the  writer  called  into 
council  Mr.  William  R.  Bradford,  head  of  the  Manual 
Training  Department,  and  Miss  Laura  A.  Stowell,  head 
of  the  Domestic  Economy  Department,  who  are  both  con- 
nected with  the  Calumet  Public  Schools.  The  following 
course  is  the  combined  result  of  the  planning  and  testing 
at  Calumet,  supplemented  by  the  hints  obtained  through 
visitation  of  and  correspondence  with  other  manual  train- 
ing schools.  It  is  not  presented  as  entirely  satisfactory, 
but  as  a  step  towards  the  realization  of  a  better  course: 

EXPLANATORY 

Our  manual  training  shops  are  located  in  one  building 
near  the  centre  of  the  school  district.  The  boys  begin 
shop-work  with  wood-working  tools  in  the  fifth  grade. 
Fifth  and  sixth  grade  boys  in  outlying  districts  are  given 
knife  work  in  their  respective  school-rooms.  Portable 
desk  tops  with  tools  were  secured  through  Chandler  & 
Barber  of  Boston,  Mass.,  at  a  cost  of  less  than  two  dollars 
per  top  with  tools  complete.  The  boys  of  two  rooms  are 
grouped  together  and  the  girls  in  the  same  way.  While 
the  boys  are  engaged  in  the  knife  work,  the  girls  are 
devoting  their  time  to  sewing. 


174  STUDIES  AND  OBSERVATIONS 

OUTLINE  OF  MANUAL  TRAINING  COURSE 
Fifth  and  Sixth  Grades  not  in  Central  Buildings. 

Pupils  in  outlying  schools  who  are  in  fifth  or  sixth 
grades  are  furnished  with  portable  desk  tops  and  tools 
with  which  to  do  knife  work.  They  are  also  furnished 
small  blue  prints  for  the  articles  they  are. to  make.  As 
the  work  progresses,  original  designs  are  required  to 
stimulate  and  encourage  the  pupils.  The  choice  of  ex- 
ercises is  to  be  made  by  the  teacher  in  charge. 

Exercises  —  Plant  label,  key  tag,  pencil  sharpener, 
thread  winder,  match  striker,  bracket  shelf,  corner 
bracket,  yarn  winder,  kite  string  reel,  match  box,  letter 
opener,  etc. 

Fifth  Grade 

Instruction  is  given  in  wood-working  tools:  names, 
parts,  uses,  and  how  best  cared  for.  Simple  exercises 
are  requked  in  lining  with  pencil,  knife,  gauge,  try- 
square,  and  T  bevel.  Plain  joints  are  made  with  special 
reference  to  diversity  and  the  skillful  use  of  tools:  e.g., 
the  halved  splice,  splayed  splice,  half  dove-tail,  single 
mortise  tenon  joint,  and  pencil  sharpener. 

Time  —  Two  fifty-minute  periods  per  week. 

Sixth  Grade 

Attention  is  devoted  largely  to  joint  work  of  a  more 
difficult  character  than  in  fifth  grade,  such  as  stretcher 
joint,  full  dove-tail,  dove-tail  drawer  corner,  box  corner 
and  full  dove-tail  box,  with  wood  whistle,  box  kite, 
weather  vane  and  crumb  tray  as  side  inducements.  Turn- 
ery is  also  introduced,  by  first  giving  a  few  exercises  in 


IN    THE   SCHOOL-ROOM  175 

beads,  cores,  grooves  and  tapers  before  undertaking  the 
making. of   a   darning   ball,   mallet,    key   hanger,*  glove 
mender,  bill  file,  napkin  ring,  including  a  general  knowl- 
edge of  the  care,  use  and  abuse  of  the  speed  lathe. 
Time  —  Two  fifty-minute  periods  per  week. 

Seventh  Grade 

Advanced  joinery  is  pursued  and  things  of  real  value 
are  produced  with  some  reference  to  the  artistic.  Like- 
wise fancy  turnery,  face  plate  exercises,  including  chuck- 
ing and  inlaid  work,  are  taken  up.  Articles  made  are, 
foot-stools,  clothes  bars,  chairs,  piano  benches,  pedestals, 
cabinets,  tables,  jardinieres,  etc. 

Time  —  Two  fifty-minute  periods  per  week. 

Eighth  Grade 

Some  fancy  turnery  and  inlaid  work  is  continued, 
including  general  drill  in  accuracy,  preparatory  to  pat- 
tern making  as  the  chief  work.  Begin  with  simple  ex- 
ercises, such  as  draft,  finish  shrinkage  of  metals  and 
other  materials,  together  with  the  best  methods  of  con- 
struction and  finishing.  Patterns  are  made  for  gears, 
pulleys,  shaft-hangers,  core  boxes,  hand  wheels,  etc. 

Time  —  Two  fifty- minute  periods  per  week. 

First  Year  High  School 
First  Semester 

Drawing  study  is  introduced  early  in  the  course  be- 
cause it  is  found  that,  apart  from  the  use  made  of  it  in 
the  laboratories  or  shops,  it  is  a  most  excellent  means 
of  developing  and  sharpening  the  faculty  of  observation. 
The  subject  is  treated  in  its  broadest  sense  to  enable 


176  STUDIES   AND   OBSERVATIONS 

pupils  to  determine  special  preferences  and  aptitudes 
they  may  possess.  The  lines  of  work  are  as  follows: 
Freehand  drawing,  mechanical  and  ornamental  lettering, 
geometric  construction,  section  lining  symbols  of  ma- 
terials, simple  projection,  drawing  to  scale,  drawing  in- 
struments and  their  uses. 

Time  —  Ten  periods  per  week. 

Second  Semester 

Blacksmith  Shop  —  Proper  tending  of  forge,  how  to 
clean,  start  fire,  hold  heats,  the  different  heats,  as  welding 
and  dazzling,  the  advantages  of  working  iron  while  hot 
as  well  as  the  damaging  results  of  working  when  cold, 
single  hand  work  and  with  helper,  shop  equipment  and 
cause  for  special  construction,  as  the  forge  with  its  tuyere 
and  blast,  with  descriptions  and  uses  of  hammers,  sledges, 
flatters,  fullers,  swages,  punches,  cutters,  heading  tools 
and  tongs,  characteristics  of  metals,  as  cast,  machine 
and  tool  steel,  with  the  processes  of  annealing  and  tem- 
pering, together  with  welding  and  flux  used,  bending, 
twisting,  brazing  and  soldering. 

Exercises  —  Wedges,  staples,  S-hooks,  skip-keys,  draw- 
bar-clamps, car  handles,  collar  bolts,  skip  washers,  pen- 
dulums, and  many  tools  made  for  shops. 

Time  —  Ten  periods  per  week. 

Second  Year  High  School 
First  Semester 

Machine  Shop  —  Directions  are  given  to  familiarize 
the  pupils  with  some  of  the  various  machines,  usually 
the  drill  press,  speed  or  engine  lathe,  including  proper 
names  for  parts,  with  the  elements  of  success  and  possible 


IN   THE   SCHOOL-ROOM  177 

mistakes  pertaining  to  the  special  operation  at  hand. 
The  class  of  work  selected  for  beginners  will  be  such 
as  requires  the  least  amount  of  accuracy,  or  where  slight 
errors  would  not  destroy  its  usefulness.  All  the  opera- 
tions are  practical  and  include  chipping,  centering,  drill- 
ing, turning,  planing,  and  the  general  care  and  fitting  of 
tools,  proper  oiling,  and  cleaning.  A  few  of  the  articles 
made  at  this  time  are:  Distance  bars,  pawl  pins,  rocker 
pins,  hammers,  jamb  nuts,  chucks,  etc. 
Time  —  Ten  periods  per  week. 

Second  Semester 

Drawing  —  Geometric  solids,  such  as  cubes,  cylinders, 
spheres,  pyramids,  etc.  Elements  of  projection,  iso- 
metric drawing,  cabinet  drawing,  perspective  drawing, 
artistic  designing,  shading  and  architectural  drawing, 
including  plans,  elevations,  perspective  and  details,  di- 
verse forms  of  workings,  drawings,  embracing  tracing, 
blue  printing,  dimensioning  and  reading  of  drawings. 

Time  —  Ten  periods  per  week. 

Junior  Year  High  School 
First  Semester 

Blacksmith  Shop  —  Much  of  the  iron  and  steel  work 
as  mentioned  previously  will  be  continued  at  this  time, 
followed  by  foundry  practice  with  small  patterns,  in- 
volving the  mixing  and  tempering  of  sand,  ramming, 
parting,  venting,  rapping  and  drawing  patterns,  together 
with  allied  information,  cores  of  green  and  dry  sand, 
the  best  mixtures  for  the  latter,  how  made,  vented  and 
baked,  mixtures  of  brass,  cast  iron,  useful  alloys  of  cop- 
per, tin  and  zinc.  Tool  making  is  again  taken  up,  giving 
special  attention  to  finishing,  tempering  and  coloring. 


i7*  STUDIES   AND    OBSERVATIONS 

Exercises  —  Lathe  tools,  diamond  point,  parting,  fac- 
ing, threading,  etc.,  shop  tools,  hammers,  sledges,  cold 
and  hot  chisels,  tongs,  pliers,  pinchers,  wrenches,  etc., 
supplemented  with  ornamental  iron  work,  brackets,  hat 
tree,  umbrella  holder,  tabouret,  and  fireplace  fixtures. 

Time  —  Ten  periods  per  week. 

Second  Semester 

Machine  Shop  —  After  a  satisfactory  review,  the  more 
advanced  work  is  taken  up,  such  as  chipping,  filing  and 
scraping  a  rectangle  to  perfect  surfaces  and  specified 
dimensions,  or  a  valve  seat  may  be  substituted  for  the 
purpose,  laying  out,  boring  and  tapping,  making  of  jigs 
and  templates  and  their  uses,  and  some  of  the  better 
class  of  lathe  and  planer  work.  In  addition  to  articles 
mentioned,  this  time  may  be  devoted  to  the  making  of 
rotating  bars,  cross  heads,  boring  and  facing  feed  screws, 
oil  and  grease  cups,  unions,  studding  boxes,  etc. 

Time  —  Teft  periods  per  week. 

Senior  Year  High  School 
first  Semester 

Drawing  —  Architectural  drawing  may  be  continued, 
followed  by  mechanical  drawing  assembled  and  in  de- 
tail, closely  observing  the  rules  for  lining,  letters,  figures 
and  arrow  heads.  Machine  design  is  only  given  in  a 
general  way  and  treated  as  time  and  preparation  will 
permit.  Some  picture  work  is  also  done  in  the  way  of 
enlarging  engines,  machines,  boats,  etc.  In  conclusion, 
the  pupils  are  given  short  methods  for  the  production  of 
artistic  designs,  and  the  forms  for  the  rapid  transfer  of 
drawings,  such  as  are  used  for  the  Patent  Office. 

Time  —  Ten  periods  per  week 


IN   THE   SCHOOL-ROOM  17.) 

Second  Semester 

Machine  Shop  —  Review  of  former  subjects  is  always 
advantageous,  and  in  connection  with  those  mentioned; 
supplementary  exercises  will  be  furnished  with  instruc- 
tions and  practice  in  the  better  class  of  machine  work, 
requiring  thread  and  screw  cutting,  taper  burning,  fitting, 
finishing  and  exsecting.  Some  exercises  that  have  beer, 
used,  as,  plumb  bobs,  planer  jacks,  sizing  gauges,  centre 
punches,  clamp  hand  screws,  dogs,  etc. 

OUTLINE  OF  DOMESTIC  SCIENCE  COURSE 
Fifth  Grade 

Basting  and  seams,  training  the  eye  to  accuracy,  appli- 
cation on  samplers  and  on  a  diminutive  garment. 
Time  —  Two  fifty-minute  periods  per  week. 

Sixth  Grade 

Review  of  most  difficult  sampler  and  addition  of  more 
difficult  stitches,  such  as  gathering,  patching,  sewing  on 
and  joining  of  lace  and  embroidery,  application  on  sam- 
plers and  a  more  complicated  garment. 

Time — Two  fifty-minute  periods  per  week. 

Seventh  and  Eighth  Grades 

Review  of  most  difficult  samplers  in  sixth  year  and 
addition  of  stitches,  such  as  hemming,  buttonholes,  blind 
stitches,  darning,  feather  stitches,  etc.,  application  on 
samplers  and  garments  for  themselves,  such  as  corset 
covers,  kimonas,  fancy  aprons,  sewing  bags,  etc. 

Time  —  Two  fifty-minute  periods  per  week. 


i8o  STUDIES   AND    OBSERVATIONS 

First  Year  High  School 

Machine  sewing  and  care  of  machine,  economical  cut- 
ting from  patterns,  making  of  set  of  undergarments  and 
shirt-waist  suit,  study  of  textiles. 

Time  —  Ten  periods  per  week. 

Second  Year  High  School 

Taking  of  accurate  measurements,  drafting  of  fitted 
lining,  shirt  waist  and  outside  skirt,  cutting  from  drafts 
and  making  of  shirt  waist  and  dress  with  or  without 
lining. 

Time  —  Ten  periods  per  week. 

Third  Year  High  School 

Cooking  —  Building  and  care  of  fire  and  oven  tem- 
peratures, sources  and  composition  of  foods,  food  values 
and  classification  of  foods,  lectures  on  Elementary  Chem- 
istry and  Elementary  Physiology  in  their  relation  to 
cookery,  elementary  study  of  plant  life,  chemical  changes 
in  processes  of  cooking,  marketing  for  special  study  of 
cuts  of  meats  and  tests  for  fish,  carving,  laboratory  work, 
in  which  each  student  prepares  representative  foods, 
such  as:  Beverages,  cereals,  eggs,  meats,  soups,  gelatine, 
foods,  fish,  vegetables,  sauces,  breads  (baking  powder 
and  yeast),  cakes,  puddings,  salads,  frozen  foods. 

Time  —  Ten  periods  per  week. 


CHAPTER  XV 

THE  BUILDING  OF  CHARACTER 
CHILD  STUDY 

The  highest  standard  that  can  be  set  up  in  measuring 
the  teacher's  efficiency  in  the  school-room  is  that  of 
results  in  the  building  of  good  character.  No  lower 
standard  for  measuring  the  teacher's  usefulness  and  suc- 
cess is  now  acceptable.  It  matters  little  whether  or  not 
the  view  is  held  that  the  child  must  build  his  own  char- 
acter, that  no  one  can  build  it  for  him,  yet  the  teacher's 
responsibility  is  great  because  she  must  furnish  the  most 
favorable  conditions,  the  right  atmosphere  so  essential 
to  the  development  and  growth  of  character. 

With  character  building  as  the  chief  aim,  it  must  be 
granted  that  there  can  be  no  successful  teaching  and 
training  of  the  child,  without  a  fair  knowledge  of  child 
nature.  It  must  also  be  conceded  that  the  knowledge 
gained  of  child  nature  from  recollections  of  our  own 
childhood,  is  insufficient,  and  does  not  in  any  way  differ- 
entiate the  teacher,  whose  special  work  it  is  to  train  the 
child,  from  the  members  of  other  professions.  It  ought 
to  be  evident  that  every  line  of  child  study  can  be  made 
to  contribute  some  good  results,  if  wisely  and  sympa- 
thetically pursued.  It  ought  to  be  equally  evident  that 
there  is  greater  danger  confronting  the  teacher  who  pre- 
sumes to  enter  upon,  or  continue  her  delicate  work  of 

181 


182  STUDIES   AND    OBSERVATIONS 

moulding  young  lives,  without  thorough  and  constant 
study  of  the  child,  than  there  possibly  can  be  in  taking 
up  any  practical  line  of  child  study.  It  can  also  be 
affirmed  with  some  emphasis,  that  the  teacher  who  can- 
not interest  herself  in  the  study  of  child  nature,  and 
excuses  herself  from  systematic,  thorough,  constant  and 
loving  study  of  her  pupils,  manifests  such  a  lamentable 
lack  of  interest  and  sympathy  that  her  efficiency  may 
well  be  questioned. 

THE  CHILD'S  POSSIBILITIES 

Behold  the  child  as  he  enters  your  school-room  on 
his  first  day  of  school!  What  does  he  bring?  What  is 
wrapped  up  in  that  little  body  of  his  ?  What  possibilities 
of  growth,  development,  achievement  lie  before  him? 
Peer  into  the  future.  Do  you  see  the  coming  man? 
Can  you  draw  aside  the  veil  and  catch  a  glimpse  of  what 
he  may  become,  how  he  may  serve  his  generation  ?  Only 
as  you  study  him.  As  he  sits  before  you,  looking  con- 
fidingly up  into  your  face,  do  you  realize  that  he  was 
created  in  God's  image,  with  the  possibilities  of  walking 
in  close  companionship  with  God,  thinking  as  Kepler 
did,  God's  thoughts  over  after  him,  or  that  he  may  become 
an  Ishmaelite  with  his  hand  against  every  man,  the 
companion  of  the  murderer  or  the  frequenter  of  the 
brothel?  Do  you  recognize,  as  he  thus  sits  before  you, 
that  there  are  heights  that  are  heaven  high  to  which  he 
may  ascend,  or  depths  hell  deep  to  which  he  may  de- 
scend? If  you  realize  this,  then  comes  the  almost  ago- 
nizing question,  have  I,  as  his  teacher,  any  share  in  this 
tremendous  responsibility,  of  determining  what  he  may 
become  ? 


IN  THE   SCHOOL-ROOM  183 

' 'Do  his  future  happiness  and  usefulness,  or  his  misery 
and  viciousness  in  the  slightest  measure  depend  upon 
anything  that  I  may  wisely  or  unwisely  do,  or  even  ig- 
norantly  leave  undone?" 

Is  it  a  sufficient  answer  to  say  that  the  teacher  cannot 
be  expected  to  overcome  the .  influences  of  home  training, 
of  parental  mismanagement  or  neglect?  Even  the  un- 
sympathetic law  says  that  the  teacher  is  in  loco  parentis. 
Can  we  plead  that  ancestral  traits,  or  the  influence  of 
heredity  cannot  be  modified  by  wise  and  thoughtful 
training?  Even  the  wild,  disorderly,  turbulent  youth, 
Bismarck,  became  the  Iron  Chancellor  of  Germany. 
Can  we  advocate  that  adverse  circumstances  or  environ- 
ment are  insuperable  ?  Even  the  ex-slave,  Fred  Douglas, 
became  one  of  the  foremost  orators  of  this  country. 
Dare  we  attempt  to  place  positive  limits  to  the  develop- 
ment of  the  human  soul?  No,  rather  let  ours  be  the 
larger  faith  that  sets  no  bounds  to  human  development, 
that  sees  limitless  possibilities  before  every  human  soul, 
and  holds  that  our  highest  privilege  as  teachers  is  to  in- 
spire and  stimulate  in  our  pupils  this  larger  faith  in  self 
and  in  the  possibilities  of  human  development. 

But  in  reaching  the  conclusion  that  we  share  in  part 
the  grave  responsibility  of  determining  what  our  pupils 
become,  must  we  not  also  conclude  that  we  must  more 
than  ever  study  each  pupil's  traits,  tendencies,  inclina- 
tions, thoughts,  feelings,  actions,  in  short,  every  mani- 
festation which  will  give  us  a  clue  to  his  real  self,  so  that 
we  may  skillfully  and  sympathetically  aid  him  in  realizing 
his  highest  and  best  self?  And  here  lies  the  chief  reason 
for  child  study  —  the  highest  self  realization,  the  fullest 
possible  development  of  your  pupils.  A  second,  but 


i84  STUDIES   AND   OBSERVATIONS 

secondary  reason,  is  that  of  your  own  development  as 
a  teacher,  that  you  may  more  quickly  see  and  more 
wisely  utilize  every  influence,  even  though  it  be  slight, 
which  tends  towards  your  pupil's  highest  self  realization. 

How  STUDIED 

How  shall  the  children  be  studied?  In  general,  sym- 
pathetically, lovingly,  intelligently,  thoughtfully.  But  this 
is  exactly  the  spirit  which  characterizes  the  true  teacher 
in  all  her  school  work.  If  this  spirit  does  not  permeate 
all  her  work,  she  has  evidently  mistaken  her  calling. 
Child  study  insists  that  its  students  be  animated  by  this 
sympathetic,  earnest,  thoughtful  spirit,  and  would  bar 
out  of  the  school- room  every  teacher  who  is  not  thus 
inspired.  It  is  encouraging  also  to  note  that  the  demand 
for  the  sympathetic,  earnest,  thoughtful  teacher  is  rapidly 
increasing  through  the  emphasis  that  child  study  has 
placed  upon  these  qualifications. 

The  children  should  also  be  studied  as  individuals 
and  not  en  masse.  It  is  the  individual  insight  that  is  so 
much  needed,  and  which  gained  has  given  such  an  im- 
pulse to  better  teaching  in  recent  years. 

I  remember,  when  a  boy,  of  undertaking  to  find  in  a 
bunch  of  striped  grass,  two  blades  exactly  striped  alike. 
There  were  thousands  of  blades  growing  out  of  that 
same  tuft,  from  the  same  fertile  soil,  moistened  by  the 
same  refreshing  rains,  invigorated  by  the  same  joyous 
sunshine  and  the  same  delightful  breezes,  yet  search  till 
weariness  came,  I  could  find  no  two  blades  exactly  alike. 
Each  had  its  peculiar  stripes,  its  supreme  purpose,  its 
marked  characteristics,  its  power  to  stamp  these  char- 
acteristics upon  the  material  it  fed  upon.  And  these 


IN   THE  SCHOOL-ROOM  185 

eternal  differences  which  distinguish  one  plant  from  an- 
other of  the  same  or  different  species  is  the  plant's  in- 
dividuality. 

We  see  peculiar  differences  of  individuality  stamped 
by  the  Creator  upon  everything,  and  the  human  soul, 
created  with  God-like  powers,  manifests  in  the  most 
striking  manner  this  same  law  of  individuality.  But 
what  a  contrast  between  the  plant  and  the  child.  While 
the  plant  has  in  a  certain  sense  choice,  the  child  has 
choice  in  a  much  larger  and  infinitely  more  dangerous 
sense.  The  child  has  conscious  life,  has  conscious 
choice,  has  conscious  purpose.  He  knows  himself  as 
living.  He  knows  himself  as  choosing.  He  knows  him- 
self as  purposing,  planning,  working  out  his  own  destiny. 

This  mystery  of  conscious  life  is  regarded  by  Dr. 
Taylor  as  the  most  fascinating,  the  subtlest,  the  sub- 
limest  phenomenon  in  the  universe.  "The  force  of 
gravitation  that  holds  the  stars  in  their  courses,  the  fer- 
vent heat  that  melts  down  mountains  and  tosses  them 
into  the  sky,  the  bolt  of  lightning  that  shivers  the  towering 
monarchs  of  the  forest,  powerful  though  they  be,  know 
not  themselves  nor  direct  a  single  one  of  their  myriad 
activities.  The  strange  and  wonderful  attribute,  con- 
scious life,  is  reserved  for  the  child,  the  man." 

The  plant's  food  is  appropriated  from  its  immediate 
surroundings  and  is  limited,  but  the  child's  food  for 
body  and  soul  is  varied  as  the  universe,  his  power  of 
assimilation  limitless,  his  choice  supreme.  He  can  say, 
"I  will  not,"  and  defy  the  power  of  man,  devil,  angel 
or  God  himself  to  change  his  decision,  and  yet  he  can  be 
wooed  into  gentle  submission  by  the  whisperings  of  sym- 
pathy and  love.  Who,  therefore,  dares  undertake  the 


1 86  STUDIES   AND    OBSERVATIONS 

grave    responsibility   of   educating,    of   training    a    child 
without  the  fullest  preparation? 

Again  the  children  must  be  studied  as  individuals 
because  they  differ  so  widely.  Some  are  apt,  others  dull. 
Some  are  quick,  others  sluggish.  Some  have  defective 
senses,  others  phlegmatic.  Some  docile,  others  intract- 
able. Some  angelic,  others  depraved,  but  all  are  created 
in  God's  image,  and  there  is  therefore  hope  that  wise 
training,  under  a  sympathetic,  conscientious,  intelligent, 
skillful,  consecrated  teacher,  will  lift  each  to  a  higher 
plane  of  living,  and  nearer  God.  But  woe  to  the  teacher 
who  does  not  rise  to  the  level  of  her  grave  responsibilities ! 

MANNER  or  CHARACTER  BUILDING 

The  formation  of  right  habits  of  thinking,  feeling  and 
acting  is  the  practical  side  of  character  building.  Right 
thinking,  right  feeling,  right  conduct  cannot  be  success- 
fully fostered  in  an  unsympathetic  atmosphere.  Interest, 
and  enthusiasm,  and  sympathy,  and  faith,  emanating 
from  the  genuine  teacher,  and  filling  the  school-room 
with  their  stimulating  influence,  and  inspiring  pupils  to 
their  noblest  efforts  —  these  are  far  more  potent  to 
mould  and  fashion  character  than  rigid  discipline  and 
formal  knowledge.  The  teacher  who  exercised  the  most 
helpful  influence  over  the  lives  of  each  of  us,  the  one  to 
whom  we  are  most  deeply  indebted,  the  one  whom  we 
hold  in  most  grateful  remembrance,  is  the  teacher  who 
manifested  the  deepest  personal  interest  in  our  welfare, 
came  into  the  closest  sympathy  with  us,  trusted  us, 
believed  in  us,  and  had  large  faith  in  us  and  in  out 
possibilities  of  growth.  Because  she  came  into  this 
close,  loving  sympathy,  because  she  showed  by  word  and 


IN   THE   SCHOOL-ROOM  187 

deed  her  belief  that  we  could  master  a  hard  lesson  or 
problem,  we,  when  confidence  in  ourselves  was  shaken, 
were  inspired  to  renewed  effort  and  gained  the  rich 
reward  of  victory  and  more  confidence  in  self. 

On  the  other  hand,  we  have  also  unfortunately  had 
the  opposite  experience.  We  can  recall  an  early  teacher, 
faithful,  sincere,  and  conscientious,  who  had  unwittingly 
shown  by  her  manner  that  she  had  lost  faith  in  our  abil- 
ity to  master  a  certain  subject,  who  so  surrounded  us 
with  this  atmosphere  of  doubt  and  distrust  of  self,  that 
it  made  it  utterly  impossible  for  us  at  that  time  to  master 
that  particular  subject.  How  many  failures  of  this  kind 
occur  daily  in  our  school-rooms?  How  many  faithful 
efforts  on  the  part  of  pupils  are  thus  robbed  of  success, 
and  failure  ensured  by  such  unwise  and  unsympathetic 
treatment?  How  much  of  "born  short"  can  thus  be 
accounted  for  because  of  this  serious  failure  on  the  part 
of  teachers  to  appreciate  the  sensitiveness  of  child  nature  ? 
Can  it  be  measured? 

Fortunately,  teachers  are  becoming  more  thoughtful, 
more  considerate  and  wiser  in  their  treatment  of  the 
children.  Greater  sympathy  and  tact  are  manifest. 
They  have  been  made  more  fully  aware  of  the  grave 
responsibilities  that  rest  upon  those  who  train  the  young. 
Their  appreciation  of  even  slight  influences,  which  may 
be  utilized  in  the  development  of  right  traits  of  char- 
acter, or  the  suppression  of  wrong  tendencies,  has  been 
greatly  increased. 

AN  INCIDENT  IN  CHARACTER  BUILDING 

The  following  incident,  which  occurred  in  the  presence 
of  the  writer,  and  in  a  first  primary  school-room,  pre- 


i88  STUDIES   AND   OBSERVATIONS 

sided  over  by  one  of  those  teachers  who  appreciate  the 
subtle  influences  which  tend  to  build  up  right  character, 
illustrates  how  such  influences  may  be  utilized. 

The  members  of  a  reading  class  were  engaged  in 
picking  out  words  on  the  blackboard  with  a  pointer. 
Anna  was  called  on  to  point  out  the  word  "drum." 
The  little  girl  at  once  rushed  for  the  board,  without  giving 
the  matter  any  thought.  The  teacher,  however,  recog- 
nizing that  Anna  was  naturally  reckless  and  rash,  and 
also  recognizing  that  Anna  was  unwittingly  emphasizing 
and  strengthening  this  trait  to  her  serious  disadvantage, 
quietly  grasped  the  end  of  the  pointer  as  she  came  for- 
ward and  said  to  her,  "Wait  a  moment,  Anna.  Take  a 
good  look  before  you  point  out  the  word."  Anna,  thus 
restrained  and  cautioned,  was  led  to  select  the  right 
word.  Had  she  been  left  to  herself,  she  would  have 
dashed  at  the  board,  and  thrust  the  pointer  at  the  first 
word  that  would  have  caught  her  eye.  If  left  to  herself, 
she  would  have  helped  to  fasten  upon  herself  the  habit 
of  thoughtlessness,  of  dashing  at  things  without  due 
consideration.  Her  wise  teacher,  however,  promptly 
checked  that  tendency,  and  turned  Anna's  energies  from 
the  channel  of  thoughtlessness  into  the  channel  of  thought- 
fulness,  from  hasty,  impulsive,  inconsiderate  action  to  the 
beginning  of  deliberate,  cool,  considerate  action. 

It  does  not  seem  possible  that  such  thoughtful,  wise 
treatment  of  a  child  can  be  regarded  by  any  intelligent 
human  being  as  a  matter  of  small  consequence.  Such 
treatment,  or  its  lack,  is  fraught  with  the  most  momentous 
consequences  to  the  child.  It  may  involve  the  success 
or  failure  of  that  child's  future  life. 


IN   THE   SCHOOL-ROOM  189 

VALUE  OF  CHILD  STUDY 

Child  study,  by  its  fostering  a  keener  and  more  sym- 
pathetic insight  into  child  nature,  develops  this  deeper 
appreciation  of  the  teacher's  responsibilities,  this  greater 
sensibility  to  the  subtle  influences  which  contribute  to 
the  building  of  strong  character,  and  thus  enhances  the 
tactful  teacher's  services  above  all  price. 

Child  study  has  thrown  much  additional  light  upon 
the  subtle,  slight  influences  which  mould  character  and 
has  revealed,  made  clearer,  causes  which  were  known 
to  be  operating,  but  were  not  understood.  The  pro- 
fession long  since  recognized  the  strong  moulding  influ- 
ence of  the  genuine  teacher,  and  this  fact  has  been  cur- 
rent in  the  familiar  pedagogical  adage,  "As  is  the  teacher, 
so  is  the  school."  But  it  has  been  left  to  modern  child 
study  to  make  clear  that  this  old  adage  has  its  tremendous 
significance  in  the  fact  that  the  child's  nervous  and 
muscular  systems,  so  strangely  and  delicately  united, 
furnish  such  a  plastic  physical  basis  that  upon  it  is  written 
or  impressed,  to  a  greater  or  less  degree,  every  influence 
with  which  the  child  comes  in  contact,  be  it  in  the  school- 
room or  elsewhere. 

And  so  we  have  come  to  understand  more  clearly  that 
the  old  adage  has  a  tremendous  significance,  and  that 
the  teacher  has  tremendous  responsibilities  as  she  stands 
before  her  pupils.  Here  is  the  tendency.  Stammering 
teacher,  stammering  pupils;  awkward  teacher,  awkward 
pupils ;  nervous  teacher,  nervous  pupils ;  irritable  teacher, 
irritable  pupils;  careless  teacher,  careless  pupils;  noisy 
teacher,  noisy  pupils;  impatient  teacher,  impatient  pupils. 
Arc  we  teachers  guilty  of  manifesting  or  exemplify  ing- any 


190  STUDIES   AND    OBSERVATIONS 

of  these  traits  of  character?  In  heaven's  name  let  us 
put  forth  every  effort  to  free  our  pupils  from  such  harm- 
ful, blighting  influences. 

But  fortunately  on  the  other  hand,  it  is  equally  true 
that  neat  teacher,  neat  pupils;  polite  teacher,  polite 
pupils;  cheerful  teacher,  cheerful  pupils;  thoughtful 
teacher,  thoughtful  pupils;  patient  teacher, patient  pupils ; 
enthusiastic  teacher,  enthusiastic  pupils;  conscientious 
teacher,  conscientious  pupils.  This  is  the  tendency. 
Blessed  &re  the  schools  over  which  teachers  possessing 
such  virtues  as  these  preside.  Their  reward  shall  be 
great. 

THE  PHYSICAL  BASIS  OF  CHARACTER 

References  have  already  been  made  to  the  physical 
basis  of  character.  That  such  a  physical  basis  exists, 
is  quite  widely  accepted.  It  means  nothing  more  nor 
less  than  the  wonderful  combination  of  nerves  and  muscles 
which  so  mysteriously  controls  each  living  human  body. 
To  use  a  familiar  illustration:  You  hear  the  fire  alarm 
whistle.  Instantly  you  jump  to  your  feet  and  rush  to 
a  window  to  discover  where  the  fire  is.  Trace  the  process. 
The  sound  waves  from  the  whistle  passed  through  the 
air  to  your  ear,  your  sensory  nerve-fibres  transmitted  the 
impressions  to  the  auditory  centre  of  the  brain,  where, 
by  some  mysterious  process,  it  was  transformed  into  a 
motor  wave,  and  was  sent  out  over  motor  nerve-fibres 
which  acted  directly  upon  the  muscles  of  your  lower 
limbs  and  brought  you  to  your  feet. 

Such  stimulation,  having  once  forced  itself  over  this 
course,  its  repetition  wears,  so  to  speak,  a  smoother  path 
and  a  quicker  response  follows.  Thus  the  old  soldier, 


IN   THE    SCHOOL-ROOM 


101 


by  obedience  to  commands,  has  furrowed  the  spirit,  of 
obedience  into  every  fibre  of  his  being.  It  is  therefore 
held  that  this  union  of  the  nervous  and  muscular  system 
forms  a  physical  basis  upon  which  every  voluntary  act, 
whether  good  or  evil,  wears  a  smoother  path  for  another 
of  like  character,  and  renders  it  more  difficult  for  one  of 
opposite  nature  to  get  the  right  of  way. 

Dr.  Halleck  holds  that  right  training  in  habits  of 
neatness  will  so  affect  the  physical  basis  of  character 
that  the  child,  on  catching  sight  of  a  misplaced  article, 
puts  it  in  its  place  as  naturally  as  a  bird  dog  points  to- 
ward the  bird  for  which  the  hunter  is  looking. 

The  young  man  who  has  heeded  the  voice  of  his  con- 
science has  honesty  grooved  into  his  nervous  system, 
and  cannot  do  a  dishonest  act.  You  remember  the  in- 
cident of  the  dishonest  weaver,  whose  bolt  of  cloth  had 
shrunk  in  the  fulling  process,  and  wishing  to  make  it 
the  required  length  for  his  customer  by  stretching  it, 
he  handed  Adam,  his  apprentice,  one  end  of  the  cloth 
while  he  took  the  other  end,  and  then  said,  "Pull,  Adam, 
pull  hard."  But  Adam  replied,  "I  can't  pull."  His 
muscular  and  nervous  systems  had  honesty  so  thoroughly 
grooved  into  them  through  honest  living,  that  they  prac- 
tically could  not  respond  where  dishonesty  was  involved. 

The  child  that  has  cheerfully  obeyed  his  teacher  has 
the  spirit  of  obedience  grooved  into  his  nervous  system, 
and  disobedience  can  scarcely  get  the  right  of  way.  The 
child  that  has  closely  applied  himself  to  his  work  has 
grooved  into  his  nervous  system  the  spirit  of  application, 
and  shiftlessness  can  scarcely  get  the  right  of  way.  But 
sad  to  state,  the  opposite  is  also  true,  and  severe  should 
be  the  condemnation  that  should  rest  upon  the  teacher 


192  STUDIES   AND   OBSERVATIONS 

who  permits  the  spirit  of  disobedience  or  of  shiftlessness 
to  groove  itself  into  the  nervous  system  of  any  child 
under  her  care. 

This  is  the  wide-open  door  to  ruin,  and  many  a  child 
enters  upon  it  through  the  culpable  inadvertence  or 
criminal  negligence  of  some  one  in  charge  of  a  school- 
room. The  Great  Teacher,  the  gentlest  of  men,  felt 
justified  in  pronouncing  upon  such  the  following  severe 
condemnation : 

uBut  whoso  shall  offend  one  of  these  little  ones  which 
believe  in  Me,  it  were  better  for  him  that  a  millstone 
were  hanged  about  his  neck,  and  that  he  were  drowned 
in  the  depths  of  the  sea."  And  all  thoughtful  parents 
are  about  ready  to  respond  to  this  severe  arraignment 
of  the  careless  or  thoughtless  school  keeper.  Amen  and 
amen ! 

In  these  opening  years  of  the  twentieth  century,  it  is 
coming  to  be  recognized  that  the  services  of  the  tactful 
teacher  who  possesses  a  keen  and  sympathetic  insight 
into  child  nature,  a  deep  appreciation  of  the  teacher's 
responsibilities,  a  discriminating  sensitiveness  to  the 
subtle,  silent  influences  which  contribute  to.  the  building 
of  strong  character,  are  above  all  price.  Seek  to  become 
such  wise  builders  of  character,  and  your  reward  will 
be  sure. 


CHAPTER  XVI 

A  STUDY  IN  STUDY 
GREAT  Loss  OF  TIME  IN  STUDY 

"At  least  three-fourths  of  all  the  time  spent  by  a  boy 
of  twelve  in  trying  to  learn  a  hard  lesson  out  of  a  book, 
is  time  thrown  away."  —  G.  Stanley  Hall. 

This  is  the  cool,  deliberate  statement  of  Dr.  Hall,  the 
father  of  the  child  study  movement  in  this  country.  This 
is  the  positive  conviction  held  by  the  most  thorough  and 
astute  student  of  children's  characteristics  and  habits  that 
this  country  has  produced.  Coming  from  the  highest 
authority,  isn't  it  a  startling  utterance?  Shouldn't  it 
challenge  the  attention  of  every  teacher  ?  Is  it  true  ? 

Let  us  carefully  scan  it  again:  "At  least  three-fourths 
of  all  the  time,"  sometimes  more  than  three-fourths  of 
all  the  time,  at  best  "three-fourths  of  all  the  time  spent 
by  a  boy  of  twelve  in  trying  to  learn  a  hard  lesson  out  of 
a  book,  is  time  thrown  away."  If  Stanley  Hall  is  right, 
and  I  believe  that  nearly  every  observing  teacher  will 
agree  that  he  is,  what  a  tremendous  waste  of  time  and 
opportunity  is  constantly  going  on  in  every  school-room, 
in  the  very  presence  and  under  the  open  gaze  of  the 
guardians  of  those  school-rooms. 

Educators  and  teachers  have  patiently  worked  out  great 
improvements  in  text-books,  in  methods  of  teaching,  in 
management  and  organization  and  have  greatly  enriched 

193 


194  STUDIES   AND    OBSERVATIONS 

the  school  curriculum,  but  have  done  practically  nothing 
to  overcome  the  greatest  loss  in  the  entire  school  system, 
the  loss  of  that  three-fourths  of  the  time  of  the  study 
period.  This  is  one  of  the  most  surprising  conditions  to 
be  found  in  our  otherwise  rather  highly  perfected  school 
system.  I  want  to  set  teachers  to  thinking  over  the  solu- 
tion of  this  great  problem:  How  can  we  teachers  lessen 
this  tremendous  loss  of  time  which  is  constantly  going  on 
in  our  school  rooms? 

Perhaps  some  teachers  may  be  a  little  skeptical  as  to 
the  correctness  of  Dr.  Hall's  statement.  Perhaps  they 
may  think  he  wanted  to  be  sensational,  or  at  least  radical. 
True,  he  strikes  out  straight  from  the  shoulder,  but  he 
carefully  weighs  his  words  and  makes  no  hasty  general- 
izations. 

How  TIME  is  LOST 

When  Dr.  Hall  declares  that  at  least  three-fourths  of 
the  study  period  is  time  thrown  away,  I  interpret  that  he 
doesn't  mean  that  there  is  a  deliberate  idling  or  inten- 
tional dawdling  away  of  three-fourths  of  the  time,  but 
that  through  unconscious  mind- wandering,  wool-gather- 
ing, letting  thoughts  foreign  to  the  subject  drift  through 
their  minds,  day  dreaming,  castle  building,  lack  of  con- 
centration, inability  to  separate  the  essentials  from  non- 
essentials,  the  unwise  attempts  of  memorizing  the  words 
of  the  text  without  proper  assimilation  of  the  thought,  the 
many  evils  resulting  from  undigested  rote-learning,  the 
formation  of  these  and  other  bad  habits  of  study,  these 
cause  the  losses  to  mount  up  to  such  tremendous  and 
appalling  proportions. 

One  most  serious  side  of  this  problem  is,  that  much  of 


IX  THE   SCHOOL-ROOM  195 

this  loss  is  experienced  by  boys  and  girls  who  are  earnestly 
striving  to  master  a  subject.  They  have  no  desire  or  in- 
tention of  throwing  away  time.  They  are  conscientiously 
striving  to  utilize  their  time  to  the  best  advantage  in  attain- 
ing a  firm  grasp  of  the  subject  under  consideration,  but 
they  do  not  understand  the  dangers  and  temptations 
which  confront  them  in  their  earnest  attempts  to  master 
a  subject. 

Why  are  there  so  few  pupils  in  our  schools  who  know 
how  to  thoroughly  master  a  subject  ?  Certainly  they  arc 
not  indifferent.  They  want  this  power  to  concentrate  all 
their  energies  on  the  task  in  hand.  Why  have  so  many 
of  them  fastened  upon  themselves  bad  habits  of  study? 
They  haven't  thus  handicapped  themselves  intentionally. 
It  must  be  that  we  teachers  could  have  saved  them,  at 
least,  in  part,  from  dropping  into  these  bad  habits  of 
study  had  we  put  them  on  their  guard.  Certainly  we 
ought  to  have  pointed  out  to  them  that  the  paths  of  in- 
attention, of  mind-wandering,  of  lack  of  concentration, 
arc  easily  established  by  a  few  careless  journeys  into  such 
territory.  These  paths  lie  in  the  direction  of  least  resis- 
tance and  are  even  more  harmful  than  they  are  seductive. 

ART  OF  STUDY  IMPORTANT 

The  art  of  study  is  one  of  the  greatest  arts,  and  its 
mastery,  or  failure  to  master  it,  is  fraught  with  momentous 
consequences  to  the  pupil.  There  are  those  right  begin- 
nings, or  ways  of  approach,  which  lead  the  pupil  on  to 
conscious  power  and  mastery,  and  there  are  those  mis- 
guided and  futile  efforts  which  end  only  in  weariness  and 
defeat. 

How  a  pupil  studies  is  a  matter  of  much  greater  moment 


196  STUDIES   AND    OBSERVATIONS 

than  what  he  studies.  Manner  is  permanent,  matter  is 
tmnsient.  Habits  cling  throughout  life  and  shape  it. 
Knowledge  is  often  carelessly  gained  and  easily  lost. 
For  a  pupil  to  form  bad  habits  of  study  in  early  school 
life,  to  drop  into  habits  of  dawdling  over  a  subject,  to 
fail  to  develop  his  powers  of  concentration,  is  to  render 
subsequent  school  life  a  drudgery  instead  of  an  inspiration, 
and  bars  the  doors  to  intellectual  pursuits  after  school 
days  have  passed. 

And  yet  we  have  conducted  the  recitation  as  if  knowl- 
edge, subject  matter,  was  the  chief  aim.  Tests  in  recita- 
tion are  all  directed  to  ascertain  how  much  the  pupil 
knows  of  the  subject,  or  perhaps  more  correctly,  to  a 
discovery  of  how  much  of  the  language  of  the  text-book 
has  been  memorized,  while  the  more  vital  process  of  how 
he  gained  his  knowledge  is  ignored. 

Another  defect  in  the  method  of  conducting  the  recita- 
tion, or  even  the  study  periods  which  are  spent  with  the 
teacher,  is  that  we  are  constantly  leading  the  pupil,  con- 
stantly directing  him  at  every  step  whether  he  is  right  or 
wrong,  never  leaving  him  to  direct  his  own  steps,  never 
affording  him  the  opportunities  of  self-direction,  never 
developing  sufficiently  in  him  the  power  of  initiative. 
Should  it  then  be  a  matter  of  surprise  that  when  he  is 
left  to  himself  to  master  the  meaning  of  the  paragraphs 
in  his  text-book,  where  he  must  explore  the  way  alone, 
that  he  dawdles  and  gets  nowhere? 

" Dawdles  and  gets  nowhere?"  That  was  a  thought- 
less statement.  He  does  get  somewhere.  He  is  beating 
out  for  himself  the  paths  which  will  forever  lead  him 
away  from  the  student's  goal.  A  radical  change  is  needed. 
Pupils  must  be  thrown  more  upon  their  own  resources, 


IN   THE   SCHOOL-ROOM  197 

learn  how  to  break  up  a  somewhat  complex  thought  into 
simpler  ones,  by  actually  doing  it  for  themselves. 

Dr.  Frank  McMurry  related  that  he  one  day  taught  a 
fourth  year  class  in  literature.  He  suddenly  inquired, 
"Do  you  ever  stop  to  talk  over  what  you  read?"  "No," 
replied  several;  "Yes,"  said  a  few,  "sometimes  we  do." 
"All  right,"  said  he.  "Let  us  stop  here  and  talk  a  few 
minutes.  Eddie,  what  have  you  to  say?"  "O,  we  don't 
talk;  the  teacher  does  the  talking,"  replied  Eddie,  with  a 
most  nonchalant  air.  Dr.  McMurry  adds,  "How  typical 
of  the  school!  How  lamentable!" 

The  efficient  teacher  must  develop  greater  ability  in 
herself  to  keep  still  and  let  the  pupil  do  more  thinking 
and  talking,  even  though  he  does  it  slowly  and  lamely  at 
first.  The  power  of  initiative,  of  self  direction,  must  be 
developed  and  then  he  can  engage  in  successful,  inde- 
pendent study. 

How  TRAIN  TO  STUDY 

Are  we  not  ready  to  admit  candidly  that  we  have  fallen 
far  short  of  our  duty  in  the  matter  of  training,  training 
into  right  habits  of  study,  and  concede  that  this  is  one  of 
the  most  important  problems  that  confronts  us?  Shall 
we  not  begin  some  systematic  efforts  to  solve  this  prob- 
lem? Shall  pupils  be  permitted  unwittingly  to  fasten 
upon  themselves  those  habits  of  study  which  will  severely 
handicap  them  through  life,  simply  because  no  guiding 
hand  pointed  out  the  dangers  of  dawdling,  of  wool- 
gathering, of  superficial  and  listless  work? 

How  shall  we  teach  our  pupils  right  habits  of  study? 
Certainly  not  by  ignoring  this  important  matter,  as  we 
have  so  largely  done  in  the  past.  Is  it  not  the  plain  duty 


198  STUDIES    AND    OBSERVATIONS 

of  every  teacher  to  take  up  a  thorough  study  of  how  her 
pupils  are  studying,  to  discover  what  bad  habits  are 
mocking  them  in  efforts  at  mastery,  and  to  train  them 
into  a  better  use  of  their  mental  powers  ? 

My  purpose  in  discussing  this  subject  is  not  to  suggest 
the  best  way  to  begin  such  study,  but  to  direct  the  atten- 
tion of  teachers  to  this  great  waste,  arouse  their  interest 
in  it,  start  them  to  thinking  about  it,  and  how  to  lessen 
this  great  loss.  The  way  to  begin  may  not  be  clear  at 
first,  but  if  they  will  only  make  some  simple  investigations 
of  their  own,  take  their  pupils  into  their  confidence  and 
ask  them  to  co-operate  in  overcoming  this  tremendous 
waste  of  their  energy,  not  only  will  the  way  open  up  for 
forming  better  habits  of  study,  but  both  teacher  and  pupils 
will  be  brought  into  closer  touch  and  sympathy  with  each 
other. 

ONE  WAY  TO  BEGIN 

In  harmony  with  the  thought  just  suggested,  one  day 
not  long  since,  I  walked  into  one  of  my  B  Seventh  Grade 
rooms  and  found  they  were  just  ready  to  take  up  the 
study  of  the  preposition.  There  were  forty-two  pupils 
in  the  room,  averaging  about  thirteen  years  of  age  and 
possessing,  as  a  class,  about  average  ability. 

I  said  to  the  teacher,  "May  I  take  charge  of  your  pupils 
a  little  while  and  see  how  we  can  study  a  lesson  together?" 
The  teacher  gave  ready  consent. 

I  explained  to  the  pupils  that  I  wanted  to  take  up  with 
them  a  little  investigation  of  how  they  were  studying.  I 
believed  that  they  were  at  least  average  pupils,  but  that 
they  were  unconsciously  wasting  a  great  deal  of  time  and 
energy  in  preparing  their  lessons.  I  wanted  to  take  them 


IX   THE    SCHOOL-ROOM  199 

into  my  confidence  and  we  would  candidly  investigate 
what  caused  this  waste.  Surely  they  were  willing  to  co- 
operate, when  the  purpose  was  to  improve  their  power 
of  attention  and  concentration,  and  to  get  a  quicker  and 
firmer  grasp  upon  their  subjects  of  study.  I  told  them 
that  those  wonderful  minds  which  they  had  would  often 
slip  away  from  them  and  were  gone  far  away  outside  the 
school- room,  and  wasted  much  time  before  they  even 
knew  it.  They  were  likely  to  become  regular  truants 
if  they  didn't  watch  them. 

"You  know  we  have  a  truant  officer  who  goes  after 
the  boys  and  girls  when  their  bodies  are  absent  from  the 
school- room  and  brings  them  back.  We  know  that  they 
can't  do  their  work,  can't  keep  up  with  their  classes,  that 
they  are  losing  all  that  time  when  their  bodies  are  out  of 
school.  So  the  truant  officer  chases  after  them,  some- 
times arrests  them  or  otherwise  punishes  them  for  wasting 
their  school  time.  But  do  you  know  that  even  when  your 
bodies  are  in  the  school-room,  your  minds  are  sometimes 
playing  truant,  and  are  not  doing  any  more  school  work 
than  if  your  bodies  were  truant  or  absent  also?  Who  is 
to  capture  your  truant  minds?  Not  the  truant  officer, 
for  he  counts  noses  not  minds.  Not  even  the  teacher, 
always,  for  your  eyes  are  upon  the  book,  while  your 
thoughts  are  miles  away.  You  must  be  the  truant  officer, 
if  you  wish  to  master  your  topic  and  yourself.  The 
teacher  can  make  a  pretty  good  guess  about  the  amount 
of  mind-truancy  you  have  indulged  in  from  your  kick  of 
mastery  of  the  subject. 

"But  not  simply  do  you  need  to  guard  against  the  mind- 
wandering  outside  of  the  school-room,  in  order  to  learn  to 
master  a  subject,  but  you  need  to  be  on  the  alert  to  pre- 


200  STUDIES   AND   OBSERVATIONS 

vent  the  interruption  of  your  thoughts  by  little  noises  and 
distractions  which  come  up  in  the  school-room.  You  can 
only  get  to  the  bottom  of  a  subject  by  shutting  out  every- 
thing from  your  mind  that  is  foreign  to  the  subject  and 
getting  down  and  digging,  and  digging  hard.  When  you 
find  your  mind  slipping  away  to  something  else,  summon 
up  your  will  power  and  order  it  immediately  to  return  to 
its  work.  You  can  bring  it  to  heel  and  make  it  serve  you 
faithfully  and  efficiently,  if  you  only  persistently  and 
promptly  go  after  it.  But  you  must  be  constantly  on  the 
alert. 

"Now  we  wish  to  study  a  little  together,  and  I  want 
you  to  watch  yourselves  as  to  how  you  study.  Be  per- 
fectly honest  about  it.  No  censure  will  be  given.  I 
want  you  to  detect  for  yourselves  your  own  bad  habits 
in  wasting  time,  and  then  set  about  correcting  them.  If 
you  correct  these,  you  will  then  be  on  the  road  to  success- 
ful and  pleasurable  study. 

STUDY  OF  PREPOSITION 

"Let  us  take  up  the  study  of  the  preposition.  I'll 
give  you  five  minutes  to  study  the  page  which  describes 
and  finally  leads  up  to  a  definition  of  the  preposition. 
I  want  you  to  do  your  best  to  keep  your  minds  on  the 
subject.  Don't  let  anything  come  in  to  divert  or  dis- 
tract your  attention.  Be,  however,  on  the  alert  to  catch 
your  mind  wandering  and  bring  it  back  as  quickly  as 
possible.  Make  it  stick  to  your  subject.  Now  this  will 
be  difficult  and  at  first  will  in  itself  tend  to  distract  your 
mind  from  concentrated  study.  However,  you  are  trying 
to  find  out  what  are  the  things  that  distract  and  divert 
from  thorough  study. 


IN  THE   SCHOOL-ROOM  201 

"I  will  indicate  when  your  five  minutes  are  over  and 
then  I  want  you  to  write  out  in  the  next  five  minutes, 
How  I  Tried  to  Study  the  Preposition.  Mention  the 
distractions  and  indicate  how  much  time  you  think  you 
lost." 

With  these  instructions  they  went  to  work  in  a  most 
earnest  and  determined  manner.  The  spirit  of  hearty  co- 
operation was  delightful.  A  few  obtrusive  noises  occurred 
outside  the  room,  pupils  passing  in  the  hall,  a  few  low 
words  of  conversation  between  the  teacher  and  myself, 
crossing  the  room  by  the  teacher  and  superintendent  and 
the  whistle  of  a  passing  engine. 

MANNER  OF  STUDY 

In  regard  to  the  manner  of  study,  ten  tried  to  memorize 
the  words  of  the  book,  six  hoped  to  master  the  subject 
by  reading  it  over  several  times,  six  tried  to  test  their 
knowledge  and  also  fix  the  thoughts  of  the  lesson  by 
asking  themselves  questions,  three  made  definitions  of 
their  own,  one  wrote,  "I  put  my  hands  upon  my  face," 
and  another,  "I  kind  of  blocked  my  ears." 

As  to  the  causes  which  induced  mind-wandering  and 
waste  of  time,  twenty-two  out  of  the  forty-two  lost  time 
from  the  noise  made  in  the  hall  by  passing  pupils  and 
wondering  where  those  pupils  were  going,  etc.  This  was 
the  most  distracting  of  all  the  noises.  Seven  suffered 
loss  of  time  because  the  teacher  and  superintendent 
crossed  the  room  once.  Four  were  diverted  by  thinking 
of  the  test  in  geography  which  was  to  be  given  later. 
Three  lost  time  thinking  over  what  they  were  to  write 
later.  Three  found  themselves  losing  time  wondering 
if  their  five  minutes  were  nearly  up.  Other  causes  of 


202  STUDIES   AND   OBSERVATIONS 

lost  time  discovered  were:  "The  whistle  of  the  engine." 
"Thinking  of  the  books  I  left  at  home."  "Loud  talking 
of  teacher  across  the  hall."  "A  crash  upstairs."  "Mov- 
ing of  some  one's  feet."  "Looked  up  to  see  the  time." 
"Looked  up  to  see  if  others  were  studying."  "Thinking 
of  vacation  next  week."  "Thinking  this  was  a  strange 
exercise."  "Wondering  what  the  superintendent  was 
doing."  "Wondering  what  the  superintendent  was  writ 
ing  about."  "Wondering  if  the  superintendent  was  going 
to  keep  us  longer  than  the  usual  time."  "Thinking 
about  a  funny  sentence  to  write  about  how  we  study." 

TYPICAL  PAPERS 

The  following  papers,  the  first  three  written  by  boys, 
and  the  second  three  by  girls,  are  typical  and  suggestive: 


"  How  I  Studied  the  Preposition  " 

"I  wasted  about  one  and  a  half  minutes  while  I  was 
studying  the  preposition. 

I  read  one  sentence  and  then  I  thought  what  Miss  P— 
was  doing  up  by  the  desk,  then  I  studied  about  a  line, 
then  I  thought  who  those  pupils  were  in  the  hall. 

I  studied  the  rest  of  that  page. 

WThen  I  got  to  the  other  side  of  the  page  I  read  this 
sentence:  The  savages  fought  with  fury:  I  thought  how 
the  savages  fought  and  how  many  men  they  killed," 


" How  I  Studied  the  Preposition" 

"First  of  all  I  read  some  of  it  over,  then  began  to  think 
what  kind  of  word  would  illustrate.  Then  I  was  inter- 
rupted by  some  one  moving  across  the  hall.  Then  my 


IN   THE   SCHOOL-ROOM  20.3 

mind  began  to  think  who  was  that  and  from  which  room. 
And  there  I  lost  a  minute.  Then  I  began  to  study  again 
and  question  myself  about  the  preposition.  As  I  looked 
off  my  lesson  I  looked  at  the  floor  and  thought  to  myself 
about  the  ink  spots.  Then  I  began  to  study  the  defini- 
tions of  the  book  and  to  memorize  the  words." 


"How  I  Tried  to  Study  the  Lesson  in  Preposition" 

"When  I  began  to  study,  I  studied  for  about  half  a 
minute,  then  I  heard  Miss  P —  walk  down  to  the  front 
of  the  room  and  I  looked  up.  Then  I  began  again,  but 
as  soon  as  I  began  to  study,  the  pupils  from  the  grading 
room  came  by  and  I  looked  up  again.  Then  after  I  had 
studied  it  awhile  I  could  not  study  it  so  hard  as  before. 
Then  the  first  thing  I  knew  I  was  wondering  what  a  funny 
lesson  we  were  having.  Then  I  tried  to  study  but  before 
I  had  studied  a  line  I  looked  at  the  clock.  When  I 
studied  — ' '  

"How  I  Studied  the  Preposition" 

"I  studied  about  a  page  when  I  looked  up  to  see  if 
the  other  girls  and  boys  around  me  were  studying  or  had 
their  eyes  on  their  books.  Then  I  studied  a  little  longer 
when  I  heard  some  one  walking  in  the  hall.  I  looked  up 
to  see  if  they  were  coming  in  our  room.  I  kept  on  study- 
ing a  tittle  while  longer  when  I  heard  some  one  walking 
in  our  room,  so  I  looked  up  and  saw  Miss  P —  was  walking 
.to  the  desk.  Once  I  looked  up  to  see  what  the  superin- 
tendent was  doing.  These  were  the  three  times  I  looked 
off  my  book.  I  wasted  about  two  minutes,  and  three 
minutes  of  hard  study." 


204  STUDIES   AND    OBSERVATIONS 

How  I  Tried  to  Study  a  Preposition" 

"I  started  to  study  real  hard.  I  studied  to  where  it 
says  a  preposition  is  a  very  important  word,  when  I  heard 
a  noise  in  the  hall.  I  didn't  mean  to,  but  before  I  thought 
I  had  my  mind  upon  the  noise  in  the  hall.  I  then  began 
to  study  again.  I  got  a  little  farther  when  I  heard  some- 
body across  the  hall  talking  and  by  this  time  I  had  lost 
about  one  and  one-half  minutes'  study,  although  when  I 
started  I  meant  to  study  all  the  while.  I  didn't  get  as 
much  out  of  my  lesson  as  I  should,  because  I  let  my  mind 
wander  away  at  every  sound  I  heard.  While  I  was 
studying  I  tried  to  learn  word  for  word." 


" How  I  Studied  the  Preposition" 

"I  went  to  work  as  soon  as  we  were  told. 

A  few  interruptions  were  made  by  the  pupils  in  the 
hall,  but  I  did  not  pay  any  attention  to  them,  I  simply 
went  to  work  as  hard  as  I  could  study. 

I  did  not  look  off  my  book  once  or  lose  one  second, 
but  went  on  studying  my  language  lesson  for  the  six  min- 
utes which  the  superintendent  gave  us  without  paying  any 
attention  to  anything  going  around  us  in  the  room  or 
school  hall,  but  I  used  up  the  six  minutes  in  good  study." 

AMOUNT  OF  TIME  LOST 

In  regard  to  the  amount  of  time  lost,  thirteen  out  of 
the  forty-two  did  not  give  any  figures.  Of  the  twenty- 
nine  who  reported,  one  gave  no  time  lost;  five,  one-half 
minute;  eight,  one  minute;  seven,  one  and  one-half 
minutes;  five,  two  minutes;  and  two,  three  minutes. 


IN   THE   SCHOOL-ROOM  205 

Total  loss,  thirty-seven  minutes,  an  average  of  one  and 
three-tenths  minutes  per  pupil,  or  about  twenty-six  per 
cent.  In  spite  of  the  fact  that  they  were  watching  them- 
selves closely  and  were  applying  themselves  in  an  unusual 
degree  (one  boy  wrote  that  he  learned  more  in  those  five 
minutes  than  in  fifteen  other  minutes),  they  lost  more  than 
one-fourth  of  those  brief  five  minutes. 

Now  this  investigation  discloses  only  the  loss  of  time 
in  the  study  period  from  mind-wandering,  and  places  it 
at  more  than  one-fourth,  when  conditions  are  most 
favorable  for  study.  Add  to  this  the  losses  which  result 
from  the  unwise  attempts  at  memorizing  the  words  of 
the  text,  without  properly  assimilating  the  thought,  from 
inability  to  separate  essentials  from  non-essentials,  from 
superficial  work,  from  many  other  bad  habits  of  study 
which  severely  handicap  the  average  pupil,  and  the  sum 
total  points  to  the  conclusion  that  Dr.  Hall  was  right  when 
he  declared,  "At  least  three-fourths  of  all  the  time  spent 
by  a  boy  of  twelve  in  trying  to  learn  a  hard  lesson  out  of 
a  book,  is  time  thrown  away."  Is  there  any  more  im- 
portant problem  up  for  solution  before  the  teachers  of 
this  country,  than  the  one,  How  to  lessen  the  great  waste 
of  time  in  the  study  period? 


CHAPTER   XVII 

A  LEAF  FROM  A  SUPERINTENDENT'S   DIARY 

As  a  superintendent  of  public  schools,  and  a  citizen  of 
the  commonwealth  of  Michigan,  I  have  great  faith  in 
the  possibilities  of  our  public  schools  transforming,  under 
ordinary  conditions,  all  classes  of  children  into  good 
citizens. 

CONDITION  or  NEGLECTED  CHILDREN 

Let  me  bring  before  you,  in  a  few  words,  a  little  more 
definitely,  what  that  transforming  process  is,  with  that 
unfortunate  class  of  pupils  whose  home  life  is  largely 
made  up  of  parental  indifference  and  neglect.  Note  the 
condition  of  such  pupils  as  they  enter  the  school-room 
for  the  first  time  and  come  under  the  humanizing,  civiliz- 
ing influence  of  the  sympathetic,  skillful  teacher.  This 
class  is  a  worse  element  in  disorganization  than  the 
awkward  squad  in  a  company  of  soldiers,  for  not  only 
are  they  awkward,  but  they  are  also  filthy:  hands  and 
face  begrimed  with  dirt,  hair  unkempt,  clothing  torn, 
altogether  in  outward  appearance,  repulsive.  Still  worse, 
however,  they  are  rude,  vulgar,  disrespectful,  untruthful, 
quarrelsome,  intensely  selfish,  impatient  of  any  restraint, 
disobedient,  without  self-control,  many  of  them  veritable 
Ishmaelites,  with  hand  against  every  other  hand.  Pity 

them,    yes,  pity  them,  for   they   are   simply   the   natural 
206 


IN   THE   SCHOOL-ROOM  207 

results  of  parental  indifference  and  neglect,  supplemented 
by  the  vices  of  street  education. 

Does  this  sympathetic,  skillful  teacher,  this  great  civ- 
ilizing factor,  this  presiding  genius  of  the  school-room, 
turn  away  in  disgust  from  these  filthy  children,  as  this 
barbarous  mob  invades  her  room  the  first  day  of  school? 
Oh,  no!  She  has  looked  beyond  each  dirty  face,  down 
into  the  soul  of  the  child,  and  caught  there  a  slight  re- 
flection of  God's  image.  She  sees  there  in  the  develop- 
ment of  that  soul,  wonderful  possibilities.  This  boy  may 
be  a  Gladstone,  or  a  Jack  the  Ripper.  This  girl  may 
become  a  Florence  Nightingale,  or  a  Juke  —  the  prolific 
mother  of  criminals.  With  the  thought  before  her  that 
her  intelligent,  faithful  effort,  or  the  lack  of  it,  may  de- 
termine which  of  these  widely  different  careers  the  child 
shall  enter  upon,  the  conscientious  teacher,  profoundly 
impressed  with  her  grave  responsibilities,  is  inspired  to 
put  forth  every  effort.  When  the  weal  or  woe  of,  not 
only  these  children,  but  also  the  weal  or  woe  of  the  city, 
aye,  even  that  of  the  commonwealth  is  at  stake,  this 
faithful,  loyal  teacher  dare  not,  can  not,  will  not  falter. 

THEIR  TRANSFORMATION 

Xote  the  wonderful  transformation  which  this  class 
of  unkempt  children  gradually  undergoes  under  the  in- 
telligent, sympathetic  teacher.  Long  before  the  pupil 
reaches  the  high  school,  he  is  neat  and  cleanly.  His 
awkwardness  and  rudeness  have  disappeared,  he  walks 
erect  with  a  manly  air,  "and  looks  the  whole  world  in 
the  face."  He  is  no  longer  vulgar  and  quarrelsome,  but 
polite  and  courteous.  His  intense  selfishness  has  been 
modified  by  the  wholesome  doctrine,  constantly  im- 


208  STUDIES   AND   OBSERVATIONS 

pressed  upon  him,  that  others  in  the  school-room  have 
rights  which  he  is  bound  to  respect,  and  in  addition  he 
begins  to  have  glimpses  of  the  great  truth  that  selfish- 
ness doesn't  pay,  but  that  his  own  best  interests  are 
best  conserved  when  he  is  working  for  the  general  good. 
Disobedience,  therefore,  disappears,  hearty  co-operation 
and  wise  self-direction  and  self-control  take  its  place. 
If  this  transformation  were  not  constantly  going  on,  and 
had  not  become  such  a  familiar  sight,  it  would  excite 
greater  admiration  and  wonder. 

Every  observing  citizen  of  the  United  States  can  furnish 
convincing  proofs  of  this  wonderful  transformation  of 
many  neglected  children  into  good  citizens,  through  the 
uplifting  influence  of  the  public  schools,  when  ordinary 
conditions  prevail.  I  gladly  bear  testimony  to  their 
magnificent  achievements.  But  what  shall  be  done  when 
environment,  a  potent  factor  in  the  training  of  the  child, 
is  directly  opposed  to  every  influence  which  the  school 
seeks  to  arouse  and  develop?  Are  the  schools  to  con- 
tinue the  unequal  struggle  without  making  the  attempt 
to  change  the  adverse  environment? 

Permit  me  to  illustrate  what  I  mean  by  presenting  a 
few  brief  chapters  from  the  history  of  a  Sioux  City  boy's 
life  as  it  came  under  my  observation. 

HARRY  BROWN'S  EARLY  HISTORY 

We  will  call  him  Harry  Brown,  but  that  is  not  his  real 
name.  Harry,  when  I  first  knew  him,  was  about  eleven 
years  of  age.  His  father  was  a  Spaniard,  and  his  mother 
had  been  dead  about  two  years.  She  left  two  little 
motherless  children  to  the  care  of  Harry,  and  the  scant 
mercies  of  a  cold  world.  The  father  sometimes  provided 


IN   THE   SCHOOL-ROOM  209 

for  the  three  children  and  sometimes  he  did  not.  Harry 
thus,  at  a  tender  age,  was  forced  at  times  to  make  a  living 
for  this  family,  and  could  not  always  succeed  by  honest 
means.  His  very  love  for  his  dependent  brothers  drove 
him  into  dishonest  acts. 

Harry's  face,  when  I  first  saw  him  in  school,  attracted 
me,  although  it  was  swarthy  and  dirty  and  his  hair  un- 
kempt. I  inquired  about  him,  and  learned  from  his 
teachers,  who  were  deeply  interested  in  him,  that  he 
inherited  his  father's  hot,  Spanish  temperament,  and 
would  fly  into  a  passion  whenever  his  wishes  were  crossed. 
He  was  constantly  in  collision  with  his  playmates,  and 
his  ebullitions  of  temper  were  a  constant  menace  to  the 
good  order  of  the  school  grounds.  His  teachers  sought 
in  every  way  to  develop  in  him  self-control.  At  times 
he  would  take  pride  in  showing  how  well  he  could  con- 
duct himself,  and  when  his  teachers  began  to  congratu- 
late themselves  that  their  long  exercise  of  sympathy  and 
patience  was  finally  to  bear  fruit,  he  would  suddenly 
drop  all  attempts  at  restraint  and  apparently  abandon 
himself  to  the  flood  of  rebellious  feelings  which  over- 
whelmed him. 

Such  outbursts  as  these  disclosed  to  us  the  sad  fact 
that  Harry's  will  power,  never  well  developed  in  the 
direction  of  withstanding  these  floods  of  passion,  had 
been  weakened  by  that  cursed  cigarette  habit.  The 
motherless,  practically  homeless  child,  had  fastened  upon 
himself  that  demoralizing  habit,  not  knowing  its  deadly 
influence  upon  his  tender  nerves  and  upon  his  will  power. 
We  pointed  out  to  him  the  serious  harm  that  must 
come  to  him  from  the  use,  not  simply  of  cigarettes,  but 
of  tobacco  in  any  form,  and  secured  his  consent  to  try 


210  STUDIES    AND    OBSERVATIONS 

to  break  up  the  bad  habit  by  the  use  of  an  antidote  for 
tobacco.  He  agreed  to  take  the  antidote  according  to 
directions,  provided  we  would  secure  it  for  him,  and 
we  did  so;  but  all  to  no  purpose.  We  tried  to  appeal  to 
his  better  nature,  pointed  out  that  it  was  an  expensive, 
filthy,  harmful,  demoralizing  habit,  all  of  which  he 
promptly  admitted,  but  when  the  final  appeal  came  to 
him  to  rise  up  in  his  strength  and  break  away  from  it, 
the  poor  boy  replied,  "I  can't."  Saddest  confession 
that  a  human  being  can  make,  and  yet  in  his  case  it  was 
literally  true. 

Inheriting  a  passionate,  vacillating  temperament,  with 
the  little  will  power,  power  of  self-control  which  he  in- 
herited, weakened,  undermined  by  the  deadly  cigarette 
habit,  what  was  there  left  to  build  upon?  How  could 
right  character  be  built  with  no  foundation  —  condemned 
like  a  rudderless  ship  to  drift,  drift,  the  sport  of  every 
adverse  breath  or  wave  of  passion? 

Some  weeks  after  this  sad  confession,  Harry  was  re- 
quested to  remain  for  a  talk  with  his  teacher  at  the  close 
of  school.  Thinking  that  possibly  some  punishment  for 
his  serious  misconduct  might  be  inflicted,  although  this  was 
not  this  teacher's  thought,  as  she  approached  he  made 
a  dive  for  the  door,  and  quickly  disappeared.  Nothing 
could  be  learned  of  him  for  some  days,  when  the  startling 
announcement  was  made  in  the  morning  paper  that 
Harry  had  shot  and  killed  a  boy  while  the  two  were 
skating  on  the  Floyd  River.  There  were  some  circum- 
stances which  seemed  to  indicate  that  it  was  not  acci- 
dental, and  so  Harry  was  arrested.  We  hastened  to  look 
him  up  where  he  was  confined,  and  made  every  effort, 
while  he  was  in  court,  to  have  him  sent  to  the  state  in- 


IN   THE   SCHOOL-ROOM  211 

dustrial  school.  It  was  very  evident  that  Harry's  chances 
of  reform  outside  the  industrial  school  were  hopeless. 
The  father  strenuously  opposed  the  plan  of  sending  him 
to  the  industrial  school,  although  apparently  indifferent 
in  every  other  direction  as  to  what  Harry  might  or  might 
not  do. 

PREJUDICE  AGAINST  INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOL 

It  is  to  be  regretted  that  so  many  people  have  such  a 
horror  of  an  industrial  school.  They  regard  it  as  they  re- 
gard a  jail,  a  place  simply  for  criminals.  While  it  is  true 
that  there  are  children  there  who  are  criminals,  yet  the 
management  in  family  groups  is  such  as  to  surround 
them  with  wholesome,  uplifting  influences,  and  the  dan- 
gers of  demoralization  are  carefully  guarded  against. 
Such  is  the  care  in  industrial  schools,  and  so  well  ad- 
ministered is  the  discipline,  that  eighty  per  cent  of  the 
boys  sent  there  become  good  citizens.  It  would  be  dim- 
cult  to  find  even  one  per  cent  of  those  who  were  aban- 
doned to  the  demoralization  of  street  education  who 
became  good  citizens.  Or,  to  put  it  otherwise,  the  boy 
placed  in  the  industrial  school  at  a  reasonable  age,  has 
eighty  times  as  many  chances  of  becoming  a  good  citizen 
as  the  one  abandoned  to  the  vices  of  street  education. 

This  prejudice  against  the  industrial  school  influenced 
also  Harry's  attorney,  as  well  as  the  judge,  and  we  found 
that  our  efforts  to  send  him  there  were  doomed  to  end 
in  failure.  Harry  was  finally  cleared  of  the  charge,  and 
set  free  to  drift  rapidly  into  the  criminal  class  through 
the  seductive  and  demoralizing  influences  of  street  edu- 
cation. The  public  schools  had  lost  their  hold  upon  him, 
and  he  became  a  willing  and  eager  attendant  upon  the 


212  STUDIES    AND    OBSERVATIONS 

schools  of  vice  in  that  city,  which,  sad  to  relate,  are 
open  day  and  night  and  ever  ready  to  allure  the  unwary 
from  the  paths  of  right.  How  long,  O  Lord,  how  long 
shall  designing  men  be  permitted  to  trap  the  boys  and 
girls  into  lives  of  sin  and  crime  through  these  schools 
of  vice  ?  Why  are  we  not  as  eager  and  devoted  in  our 
efforts  to  bring  to  naught  their  devilish  machinations 
as  they  are  to  entrap  the  unwary?  Is  it  because  there 
is  no  direct  financial  reward  to  us  in  the  saving  of  the 
boys  and  girls  from  these  schools  of  vice?  Shall  we 
concede  that  the  keepers  of  these  dens  of  infamy  shall 
be  protected,  and  permitted  to  carry  on  their  debauching 
of  the  boys  and  girls  because  forsooth  they  contribute 
to  the  city  treasury?  Since  when  have  we  become  so 
mercenary  as  to  barter  the  possible  loss  of  the  innocence 
and  virtue  of  the  children  for  filthy  lucre?  Out  upon 
these  worse  than  heathenish  ideas! 

REFORM  vs.  INFORM 

Leaving  out  the  moral  obliquity  of  such  a  method 
of  administration,  it  ought  to  be  recognized  that  from 
a  mercenary  standpoint  it  doesn't  pay.  As  an  eminent 
Englishman,  who  recently  visited  this  country,  said  of 
us,  "A  free  land  must  choose  between  the  teacher  and 
the  demagogue  —  if  the  school-master  is  not  paid,  now, 
there  will  be  the  judge  and  the  jailer  to  pay  later."  Ac- 
cording to  statistics  vouched  for  by  an  expert  accountant, 
the  cost  of  convictions  in  seventeen  criminal  cases  in 
Woodbury  County,  Iowa,  for  the  year  1894  amounted 
to  $91,115.  I  found  that  the  total  amount  paid  for 
teachers  in  the  Sioux  City  Schools  for  the  same  year 
was  $87,201.  In  other  words,  Woodbury  County  in 


IN    THE   SCHOOL-ROOM  213 

1894  paid  out  more  for  the  attempted  reformation  of 
seventeen  criminals  than  Sioux  City  did  for  the  instruc- 
tion and  training  of  over  five  thousand  children.  It  is 
true  that  '94  was  an  exceptional  year,  as  regards  the 
cost  of  criminal  prosecutions,  but  take  the  total  cost  of 
criminal  cases  in  Woodbury  County  for  the  four  years 
beginning  in  '91,  and  it  has  amounted,  according  to  this 
same  expert  accountant,  to  $202,817,  or  an  average  of 
$50,704.25  per  year.  The  total  number  of  convictions 
for  the  same  four  years  was  105,  or  an  average  of  twenty- 
six  and  one-quarter  each  year.  This  would  make  the 
average  cost  of  the  education  of  a  criminal  for  one  year 
in  the  District  Court  School,  with  the  lawyers  as  teachers 
and  the  judge  as  superintendent  of  instruction,  $1931.59, 
almost  $2000  per  capita  —  and  a  miserably  poor  caput 
at  that. 

Now  take  again  the  figures  for  '94,  when  the  cost  of 
criminal  prosecution  ran  highest.  The  cost  of  instruc- 
tion of  the  five  thousand  children  then  in  the  schools  of 
Sioux  City  was  $87,201.  This  would  make  the  average 
cost  of  the  education  of  a  boy  for  one  year  in  the  Sioux 
City  schools  $17.44 —  call  it  for  short  $18  per  capita  — 
and  each  caput  worth  a  score  of  the  other  kind  made 
over  in  the  District  Court.  It  indicates  that  it  is  more 
than  a  hundred  times  as  expensive  to  reform  the  criminal 
as  it  is  to  inform  the  boy.  I  am  confident  that  the  people 
generally  do  not  understand  how  much  cheaper  it  is  to 
equip  our  schools  generously  and  thoroughly,  and  thus 
be  able  to  train  up  all  boys  and  girls  in  the  way  they 
should  go,  so  that  when  they  are  old  they  will  not  depart 
from  it.  The  old  adage,  "An  ounce  of  prevention  is 
worth  a  pound  of  cure,"  has  nowhere  better  exempli- 


214  STUDIES   AND    OBSERVATIONS 

iication  than  here.  We  ought  to  place  tremendous  em- 
phasis on  the  economy  of  rightly  educating,  informing, 
so  as  to  avoid  the  necessity  of  reforming  later  at  such 
enormous  expense. 

It's  worse  than  " penny  wise  and  pound  foolish"  to 
equip  the  schools  for  the  right  education  and  training 
of  the  children  and  then  permit  some  of  the  children 
to  absent  themselves  to  be  educated  in  the  schools  of  vice 
fostered  by  a  "wide  open  policy."  In  the  interests 
of  better  citizenship,  we  must  loudly  and  emphatically 
protest  against  such  folly. 

HARRY'S  RAPID  DESCENT 

But  to  return  to  Harry.  We  left  him  out  of  the  public 
schools,  but  in  the  schools  of  vice,  rapidly  drifting  into 
the  criminal  class.  Occasionally  I  would  catch  a  glimpse 
of  him  in  some  obscure  quarter  of  the  city,  but  seldom 
would  he  permit  me  to  get  near  enough  to  him  to  engage 
him  in  some  friendly  conversation.  Instead  of  the  hon- 
est, straightforward  look  which  characterized  him  when 
I  first  met  him,  in  its  place  could  be  seen  the  uneasy, 
furtive  glances  by  which  the  sullied  soul  strives  to  con- 
ceal its  tarnished  condition  from  the  world's  gaze.  He 
could  not  be  induced  to  re-enter  school,  but  chose  rather 
to  continue  his  education  in  the  alluring  schools  of  vice. 

The  rest  is  soon  told.  A  few  months  later,  I  saw  by 
the  morning  paper  that  Harry  had  been  arrested  for 
stealing  coal.  I  hurried  to  the  police  station,  thinking 
now  I  could  have  him  sent  to  the  state  industrial  school, 
but  learned,  to  my  regret,  that  he  was  too  old  to  be  ad- 
mitted there.  Harry  confessed  his  guilt,  said  he  had  stolen 
the  coal  for  the  purpose  of  selling  it  and  thus  securing 


IN    THK    SCHOOL-ROOM  215 

some  money  to  spend.  The  judge  promptly  sentenced 
him  to  thirty  days  in  jail.  I  concluded  to  make  one  more 
effort  to  reclaim  him.  Harry  seemed  deeply  affected 
by  the  deplorable  situation  in  which  he  found  himself. 
He  vowed  by  everything  that  was  good  that,  if  he 
were  given  another  chance,  he  would  reform.  I  was 
convinced,  however,  that  he  could  not  reform  without 
getting  out  of  the  city,  and  away  from  his  unfortunate 
environment,  so  I  agreed  to  intercede  for  him,  if  he  would 
positively  promise  me  to  leave  the  city  immediately  and 
go  to  live  with  a  farmer  not  far  from  the  city,  who  knew 
him  and  was  willing  to  assist  him.  He  eagerly  accepted 
my  offer,  and  gave  earnest  assurances  that  he  would  go 
out  into  the  country,  remain  there,  and  make  a  new 
start  for  a  better  life. 

The  judge  was  soon  interested  in  the  case,  and  was 
willing  to  co-operate.  He  said,  however,  that  the  coal 
dealer,  from  whom  Harry  had  stolen  the  coal,  must  also 
be  won  over  to  the  plan,  and  we  went  to  see  him.  At 
first  he  was  unwilling  to  let  Harry  go,  because  he  had 
already  lost  heavily  from  such  depredations  upon  his 
coal,  and  wished  to  make  a  wholesome  example  of  Harry. 
When  assured  that  the  record  of  the  police  court  would 
show  that  Harry  was  convicted,  he  finally  consented 
and  the  judge  suspended  the  sentence  of  thirty  days  in 
jail,  on  condition  that  he  remain  outside  the  city  limits. 
If  he  returned,  he  would  be  promptly  made  to  serve  out 
his  sentence. 

Accordingly  Harry  was  released.  I  left  the  police 
court,  patting  myself  on  the  back  with  the  thought  that 
at  last  I  had  done  Harry  some  real  good,  and  had  opened 
the  way  for  him  to  lead  an  honest  life.  But  alas!  that 


216  STUDIES   AND    OBSERVATIONS 

weakened  will  of  Harry's  failed  to  serve  him.  Within 
a  month,  to  my  surprise  and  deep  regret,  Harry  was 
again  in  the  police  court  on  the  old  charge  of  stealing 
coal.  The  judge  promptly  sentenced  him  to  an  addi- 
tional thirty  days,  which  with  the  former  sentence  made 
sixty  days  to  serve. 

I  went  to  see  him  and  found  him  in  jail,  the  companion 
of  criminals.  When  questioned  about  going  out  into  the 
country,  he  frankl)  dmitted  he  hadn't  left  the  city. 
When  asked  why  he  didn't  keep  his  promise,  he  in- 
differently answered  that  he  didn't  know.  Need  I  say 
that  I  found  myself  thoroughly  disheartened  in  my  further 
efforts  to  assist  Harry?  I  tried  to  hold  up  before  him 
higher  ideals  of  life,  but  all  the  while  I  was  pleading  with 
him,  there  was  impressed  upon  me  the  hopelessness  of 
accomplishing  anything  of  permanent  good,  because  there 
were  no  foundations  upon  which  to  build. 

As  I  left  him,  deeply  depressed  with  my  inability  to 
help  him,  I  said,  "When  you  have  served  out  your  sen- 
tence here,  if  you  think  of  anything  I  can  do  for  you, 
call  at  my  home  and  I  will  try  to  help  you."  But  Harry 
never  called. 

HARRY'S  UTTER  FAILURE 

This  is  the  brief  statement  of  Harry  Brown's  sad 
failure  to  realize  for  himself  the  career  of  usefulness 
which  was  open  to  him.  He  possessed  natural  abilities 
and  had  placed  within  reach  golden  opportunities,  which 
if  properly  cultivated  and  utilized,  would  have  won  for 
him  an  honorable  position  among  the  world's  workers. 
But  he  was  unhorsed  at  the  outset  of  life's  race. 

He  failed  miserably,  failed  utterly,  failed  hopelessly, 


IN   THE   SCHOOL-ROOM  217 

and  found  himself  an  outcast,  a  criminal,  the  slave  of 
his  base  desires,  the  miserable  victim  of  his  suicidal 
selfishness,  instead  of  a  useful,  honorable  citizen,  filled 
and  thrilled  with  noble  aspirations  and  finding  his  high- 
est development  and  enjoyment  in  serving  others. 

"Of  all  sad  words  of  tongue  or  pen, 
The  saddest  are  these,  It  might  have  been." 

What  a  terrible  loss  such  a  life  failure  is  to  the  in- 
dividual, to  the  community,  to  the  world,  can  only  be 
properly  estimated  by  Him  who  came  that  we  might 
have  life  and  might  have  it  more  abundantly,  through 
this  uplifting  service  of  others. 

Need  I  state  my  purpose  in  presenting  to  the  teachers 
of  this  great  country  these  brief  but  sad  chapters  from 
Harry's  life  ?  Harry  did  not  plan  to  have  his  life's  pros- 
pects thus  blasted.  We  must  concede  to  him  a  normal 
desire  to  succeed,  to  realize  at  least  a  fair  degree  of  en- 
joyment and  success.  To  assume  otherwise  is  to  charge 
him  with  entertaining  such  illogical  ideas  as  would  lay 
him  open  to  the  charge  of  insanity,  or  of  being  a  moral 
pervert.  Harry  Brown  was  neither  insane  nor  a  pervert, 
and  yet  Harry  Browns  are  to  be  found  in  every  city  of 
this  great  country.  On  what  or  on  whom  does  this  terrible 
responsibility  rest?  Here  is  a  question  of  tremendous 
import  to  every  one  who  loves  his  fellow  man. 

CAUSES  OF  FAILURE 

When  we  begin  to  analyze  the  probable  causes  which 
have  contributed  to  this  direful  result,  we  at  once  think 
of  the  influences  of  heredity,  environment  and  home 
training.  Harry  was  handicapped  without  doubt  in  life's 


218  STUDIES    AND    OBSERVATIONS 

race,  by  the  Spanish  blood  coursing  through  his  arteries, 
but  if  he  had  not  weakened  his  will  power  by  the  in- 
sidious poison  of  cigarettes,  he  might  have  fought  out  a 
winning  campaign  against  his  hot  temper  and  gained  the 
victory  of  self-control  over  his  naturally  passionate  nature. 

Will  we  place  the  whole  responsibility  of  Harry's  sad 
failure  to  gain  the  mastery  over  self  at  his  door?  Not 
if  you  leave  the  decision  to  me.  While  Harry  has  much 
of  responsibility,  yet  there  is  also  an  awful  responsi- 
bility to  be  laid  at  the  door  of  parental  neglect.  Right 
character,  by  divine  appointment,  must  be  largely  moulded, 
shaped,  built  up  in  the  home.  The  schools  can  do  much, 
but  the  home  should  always  prove  the  greatest  factor  in 
character  building.  Terrible  must  be  the  condemnation 
visited  upon  the  parents  who  fail  to  meet  their  grave 
responsibilities  in  this  direction. 

Some  blame  must  also  rest  upon  the  city  or  state  au- 
thorities which  foster  or  even  permit  the  awful  schools 
of  vice  found  in  almost  every  city. 

TEACHERS'  RESPONSIBILITIES 

But  I  also  hold,  while  dividing  this  terrible  responsi- 
bility, that  we  teachers  might  lessen  the  number  of  Harry 
Browns  if  we  only  knew  boy  nature  better.  It  is  not 
enough  that  we  are  filled  with  an  earnest  desire  to  help 
them  to  avoid  making  such  terrible  mistakes,  that  I 
assume  we  all  have,  but  we  must  have  with  it  a  keen 
appreciation  of  the  boy's  point  of  view,  come  into  closer 
companionship  with  him,  and  skillfully  and  patiently 
arouse  the  desire  for  self-mastery,  inspire  confidence  in 
himself,  and  in  his  power  to  grow  and  grasp  his  oppor- 
tunities. 


IN   THE   SCHOOL-ROOM  219 

I  am  ready  to  lift  my  hat  admiringly  to  the  primary 
teacher  who  is  able  to  win  her  forty  or  fifty  children 
and  transform  them  into  willing  subjects,  ready  to  re- 
spond to  her  slightest  wish.  She  has  great  power  and  is 
exercising  a  moulding  influence  upon  these  young  lives 
that  cannot  be  measured.  God  bless  her  in  her  noble 
work ! 

But  I  am  even  more  ready  to  lift  my  hat  with  a  pro- 
founder  bow  to  the  grammar  grade  teacher  who  can 
rescue  the  Harry  Browns  from  their  intense  selfishness 
and  perverted  tastes  and  inspire  in  them  a  genuine  crav- 
ing for  the  things  which  stand  for  growth,  for  worthy 
accomplishment,  for  usefulness,  and  for  saner,  nobler 
living.  While  according  high  praise  to  the  wonderful 
influence  of  the  masterful  primary  teacher,  I  believe  it 
is  fitting  to  accord  a  higher  paean  of  praise  to  the  gram- 
mar grade  teacher  who  wins  Harry  Browns  from  the 
error  of  their  ways. 

I  am,  however,  thoroughly  aware  of  the  fact  that  the 
grammar  grade  teacher  is  severely  handicapped  in  re- 
claiming Harry  Browns.  That  winning  her  way  into 
a  closer  companionship  with  these  unfortunate,  mis- 
guided boys,  that  individual  study  of  their  perverted 
tastes  and  interests  is  almost  impossible  when  she  has 
fifty  pupils  to  train  up  and  inspire.  How  long  will  it 
take  an  intelligent  public  to  learn  that  such  overcrowding 
of  school-rooms  causes  irreparable  loss  to  the  individual 
pupil,  to  the  community  and  to  the  state? 

WHO  is  TO  BLAME? 

And  now,  let  me  press  these  questions  upon  you.  Who 
is  to  blame  that  Harry  Browns  are  to  be  found  in  every 


220  STUDIES   AND    OBSERVATIONS 

city  throughout  this  country  of  ours?  Shall  we  largely 
place  the  blame  upon  the  parents?  Shall  we  hold  the 
boy  himself  chiefly  responsible?  Shall  we  charge  it  up 
chiefly  to  heredity  or  environment?  Shall  we  locate  a 
share  of  this  grave  responsibility  with  the  prevailing 
inane  method  of  city  government?  Shall  we  admit  that 
a  small  share,  at  least,  of  this  grave  responsibility  rests 
upon  the  teacher?  Wherever  we  may  locate  the  blame, 
the  pressing  question  still  is,  "How  shall  we  as  teachers, 
or  as  citizens,  lessen  the  number  of  Harry  Browns?" 
One  of  the  purposes  which  prompted  the  writing  of 
the  foregoing  chapters  of  this  book,  was  to  emphasize 
the  value  of  individual  study  of  pupils  as  a  means  of 
coming  into  closer  and  more  vital  touch  and  sympathy 
with  them  and  thus  lessen  the  number  of  Harry  Browns. 


UNIVERSITY  01"  CALIFORNIA  LIBBAB1 


THIS  EOOK  IS  DUE  ON  THE  LAST  DATE 
STAMPED  BELOW 


,0 


OCT  19191 
f-'OV  21  19! 


AP8271923 


OCT  1C 
JUL  19  IS2J 


B6 

LOA 


RECEIVED 
AUG   41887-4 

EOUC-PSYCH.  UBfiAdY 


30m-6,'l4 


VC  03657 


